In A Time of Need
by X-Nefertiri-X
Summary: Tohru is keeping a secret from the Sohma's, the only one that knows is Hatori. Can the others find out what it is and help Tohru before it's too late? Ch 13 is HERE! FINALLY COMPLETE!
1. Caught in the Rain

AN: This is my first shot at a Fruits Basket fan fiction. Characters are a little OOC, especially Tohru... but I tried to keep them as close to the original versions as possible.

Disclaimer: I Don't own Fruits Basket or receive any profit from my works, unfortunately...

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Chapter One - Caught in the Rain.

It was later than usual when Tohru made her way home from work that evening. Momiji had begged her to stay behind for a while and play with him and how could she say no to such an adorable face? She stayed back for about an hour, being chased around by the excited Momiji who was trying to catch her, just so he could turn into a rabbit. They spent the whole time laughing together until Tohru looked at her watch and, realising how late it was, made her excuses to the saddened Momiji and took her leave.

The moon was not to be seen as clouds covered the entire sky in a dark shade of grey. Tohru struggled against the wind that was blowing strongly and begged her legs to keep moving so she could get home quickly. Tohru glanced up at the sky and saw a bright flash of lightning, followed soon by a roll of thunder. She stopped still for a moment, becoming frightened. After her pause, Tohru clasped her bag tightly around her shoulders and made a dash for the path into the tree covered park.

"Oh, no! I hope it doesn't rain just yet!!" Tohru said to herself above the loud thunder. Not five seconds after she had said this, torrents of rain came pouring down from the sky and Tohru cursed under her breath. "Always the one to speak too soon aren't I?" She dashed along the path as the rain soaked through her clothes, making her skin cold and damp.

Tohru was still running along the path when she came across a large puddle of mud that she could not possibly avoid. "AH!" Tohru yelled in exasperation. "I could have stuck to the road... but no-o-o!" she complained to herself, slowing her pace down to an extremely slow one, acting as if she were walking on glass. Tohru was just getting to the other side of the mud and let out a triumphant yell, when she slipped on her heels and came crashing down, landing back first into the sticky mud.

Tohru climbed gingerly to her feet and stepped out of the puddle. She looked down at her muddied legs and let out a defeated sigh. Seeing no point in hanging around, Tohru continued walking at a steady pace back home. By this time she was completely soaked through, covered in mud and feeling a little worse for wear. "My bag..." Tohru said, suddenly remembering something. "Oh no! My homework is going to be all wet! What will I do?" Tohru became increasingly upset as she continued her journey home, quickening her pace after the realisation of her wet homework.

The storm around her continued as Tohru trudged home. She was not too far away when, with her mind working like clockwork, she remembered yet another thing, something more dear to her than anything she possessed (besides her mother's photograph). Tohru followed the path back to the Sohma's and dropped her bag on the porch, before dashing off again, back into the howling wind and rain.

The door to the house slid open and Shigure's face peered out from around the corner. "Ah, no!" Shigure began, taking a dramatic stance "My poor Honda-san has turned invisible!" he said, staring at the bag on the porch. "Or has my darling shrunk from all this rain?" He asked no-one. Shigure picked up the bag and began looking about for a miniature version of Tohru.

"Shigure, what are you doing?" asked a shivering Yuki to the searching guardian. Shiguri held up the damp backpack and sighed. "Honda-san has shrunk!" he replied tearfully. Yuki swung a hand through the air and brushed it hard against the back of Shigure's head. "Ouch... what was that for 

Yuki-kun?" Yuki didn't answer, but looked out into the swirling rain and whisked away leaves, wondering where Tohru had gone.

(Meanwhile)

Tohru ran through the thick brambles, battling against the wind. Several times her skirt became caught in some thorns and it took her a few moments to untangle the two. Finally, she reached her destination. Tohru ran over to a rock sitting not too far away and pushed it over, grabbing a fairly large sized tarp from underneath it and set to work. She pinned each corner of the tarp down over a small vegetable patch using rocks similarly sized to the one she had pushed over to retrieve the tarp in the first place. Her work done, Tohru turned on her heel and ran back home, desperate to escape the cold.

Her whole body was numb by now and she could hardly feel her legs, yet they kept moving, getting her to her desired destination. She saw a warm orange glow coming from the house and was relieved beyond words. She ran up to the porch and almost crashed through the sliding frame in her attempt to open it quickly. Tohru tripped and fell, right into the awaiting arms of Yuki, who was leaning his back against the wall.

Yuki caught her before she fell, making sure not to touch his chest to her in case he turned into a rat and she fell down. Kyou came sliding into the room in his socks and pants, almost crashing into the wall before him. Tohru was so out of breath that she couldn't thank Yuki for catching her, nor could she laugh at Kyou.

Tohru's knees buckled from exhaustion and she slid down onto the floor with the supportive help of Yuki. Kyou came sliding over to the two and just stood, looking at her. "Honda-san, where have you been?" Yuki asked, extensive amounts of worry present in his voice and in his eyes. Tohru just waved her hand at him, panting heavily. Yuki got the message and let her be for the moment until she caught her breath. Kyou left the room for a moment and returned with a glass of water which he offered to Tohru, kneeling down at her side. Tohru accepted the glass thankfully and downed its contents in a matter of seconds. A few moments had passed before Tohru's heavy breathing had subsided and returned to normal. Yuki took this as a chance to repeat his question.

"Honda-san, where have you been? I- We've been so worried about you!" Yuki gripped her shaking hand, feeling it cold and damp.

"Tohru, you're really pale." Kyou began, concern etched into his face, "We should get you out of those wet clothes... I mean-!"

Tohru managed a small giggle and nodded. With the boys either side of her, an arm draped around each of their shoulders, they supported her all the way upstairs in her worn out state and lead her into her room. Shigure came in behind them a second later, holding a towel and a steaming cup of tea.

"Ah, Tohru-chan!" Shigure smiled "It seems that we have not lost our excellent cook after all!" This said, both Yuki and Kyou sent a flying fist into Shigure's stomach, causing the man to fall to the floor. He quickly sat up, waving his hands in front of his face in surrender and backed out of the room.

"Thank you, Sohma-san, Kyou-kun, for helping me up here" Tohru said, bowing slightly to each of them in turn.

Kyou stood, staring at her small frame. He had never noticed how tiny she was until this moment. Her wet uniform clung to her figure and made her seem even skinnier than he first thought. Snapping himself out of it, he lifted a hand to the back of his head and scratched a spot behind his ear, much the same as a cat would. "Don't mention it." He said casually "Just dry and dress and we'll come back in when you're done" He smiled and then pushed Yuki lightly in the back so he'd move out of the room to give Tohru some privacy.

Out in the hall, Kyou motioned with his head for Yuki to move down the hall, Yuki did so without disagreement and they stopped a safe distance away from Tohru's room.

"Did you see how thin she was?" They both asked in unison, their voices low enough so they could not be heard.

"You noticed too huh?" Kyou asked.

"Who wouldn't notice? I wonder what's wrong..."

"You're not the only one."

"I wonder if she's eating enough."

"What do you mean? She eats every meal with us, doesn't she?"

"She does, but do you ever take the time to watch her eat?" Yuki questioned, a serious look in his eyes.

Kyou stood still for a moment "Can't say I have" he replied "Do you think we should keep an eye on her?"

"Definitely. And tell Shigure?"

"Can't see how it'd hurt" Kyou shrugged.

"Ah, you two boys getting along like this" Shigure said, wiping an imaginary tear away as he appeared behind the two "It sure does bring a tear to the eye!". Kyou scowled and folded his arms; Yuki just shook his head and proceeded to tell Shigure of their recent discovery. "My Tohru-chan? Unwell? It is not to be heard of! No! This could mean..." Shigure paused for a dramatic effect "I might have to cook my own food!" Yuki and Kyou both punched him in the stomach once more and stalked off to wait at Tohru's door.

"Honda-san, are you decent?" Yuki asked, knocking on the wood of the sliding door.

"Hai! Come in!" she replied.

Yuki grabbed the handle of the door, but before he could open it, Kyou stopped him and whispered into his ear "Don't even think about asking her about what we discussed."

"Wouldn't dream of it" Yuki replied coolly. Kyou released his arm and Yuki proceeded to open the door and step into Tohru's room, closely followed by Kyou.

Tohru was sitting on the edge of her bed, looking much better now that she was dry and in warm clothes. Yuki sat down by her feet and Kyou sat on the bed next to her. All were silent for a moment, then Tohru began talking quite fast.

"I'm so sorry I made you worry! I was only on my way home after staying back to play with Momiji and I got caught in the storm and fell over in the mud and I remembered that you're vegetable patch was going to get ruined if I didn't put the tarp over it, so I dropped my bag off here and went off to protect it from the wind which made me even later than I had anticipated and.. Oh! I never made you any dinner! Oh I'm so sorry I neglected you all how could I have done such a thing when you have taken me in like you have when there was no expectation for you to do so and you gave me a room and let me take up your time like I am now when you should all be asleep! Oh no! You should be asleep! I'm so sorry!"

Yuki and Kyou stared at her in amazement. They knew she could talk a lot when she wanted to, but she had hardly taken a breath though her entire speech. Yuki just sighed and lent forward to hug Tohru's legs while Kyou laced an arm around her shoulders. They both gave her a light, reassuring squeeze before Kyou got up and walked to the door.

"Goodnight Tohru." Kyou said as he exited the room with a wave.

"Goodnight Kyou-kun." she said with a smile.

"Honda-san?" whispered Yuki, now alone with Tohru.

Tohru jumped at the sound of her name. She had completely forgotten that Yuki was still in the room with her. _"A silly thing to forget" _She told herself, _"when I only watched Kyou leave."_ She placed her hand momentarily over her heart before looking up at Yuki who was now standing before her. "Hai, Sohma-kun?"

"I didn't mean to startle you Honda-san, it' just... I-I think...You could have..." Yuki was having a terrible time getting what he wanted to say out of his mouth.

"Sohma-kun?"

"Honda-san," Yuki said firmly but gently, "it was just a vegetable patch. Why did you have to risk your health for something like that? It's just a silly little vegetable patch..."

Tohru looked at the boy before her and saw his concern, she smiled at this and reached for his hand. Yuki was looking down at his feet when Tohru grasped his hand and he snapped his head up to look at her.

"Because that is Sohma-kun's secret base." Tohru replied simply. "Because that place is what you care about most in the world." Tohru was looking into Yuki's eyes now and was determined not to 

break her connection with them. "Because you need it. And I..." She stood up, closing the gap between them "And I need... I need you to be happy" She sighed looking away.

"Honda-san... Thank you..." Yuki managed to say before looking towards the door. He turned his head back to her and gave her a lingering, tender kiss on the forehead before walking over to the door and leaving the room, sliding the door shut behind him.

AN: So what did you think? Leaving your opinions in a review would we really nice... flames are welcome, but please be nice about it... constructive criticism!! That's what it's called.

I'll update with the next chapter after I've recieved my first set of reviews. It'll give me a chance to adjust my story if i need to.

Until next chapter then!

-X-Nefertiri-X-


	2. Early Mornings

AN: Thanks to those who have read my story and added it to their alert lists! This chapter is dedicated to MistressAnime, my very first reviewer for _this_ story.

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Chapter Two - Early Mornings

Yuki walked at a quickened pace back to his room, slid the door shut in a hurry and threw himself on his bed. He lay there, staring at the ceiling for a few moments, recalling what Tohru had just said to him. _"Because that place is what you care most about in the world. Because you need it. And I... And I need... I need you to be happy"_

"What did she mean by that?" Yuki wondered aloud "She wants me to be happy, she said... but I'm only happy when she's around... she's what I care about most in the world..." Yuki was beginning to feel frustrated with himself "Why couldn't I just tell her that?!" He yelled and began beating himself up with his pillow. "But then again..." he paused motion "why am I thinking about that when she is in the state of becoming ill? When she IS ill? Ah you baka nezumi, Yuki!" he scolded himself and proceeded beating himself up with the pillow.

"Well this is a sight I haven't seen before" Kyou said slyly, casually leaning against Yuki's now opened door "The all-mighty Yuki losing a fight to a pillow, how tragic..."

Yuki glared at Kyou before realising the hilarity of the situation, he then laughed, much to the surprise of Kyou, who then walked into Yuki's room and sat down on the edge of his bed. Yuki and Kyou both looked out the window, both thinking the same thing.

"Does she seem okay to you?" Kyou asked a yawning Yuki.

"Well she's acting like she's okay, but looking closer I can tell that she isn't"

"I never realised how thin she was, really... it makes me feel awful..."

"After she's cared for us so much..." Yuki began, feeling slightly sickened with himself "we repay her with neglect? Who does that to such a wonderful person?"

"I feel the same" Kyou said, dropping his chin to his chest "But what can we do?"

"Well... we can let her know we're there. Let her know we care for her."

"Sounds like a go-o-od plan" Kyou said, failing to stifle a yawn of his own "I'm off to bed before Tohru begins to worry that I'm not asleep. Night, rat!"

"Night, cat!" Yuki said to the retreating back of Kyou, who left the room and slid the door shut with a light snap.

Tohru drank the tea that Shigure was so kind to bring up to her that tasted of blackberries and mint. She then brushed her teeth and tied her long hair back into a low ponytail with a band and got under the covers. She checked her clock before closing her eyes. "Eleven? Oh, just great..." she sighed and rested her head against the pillow, facing the other direction. Tohru's eyes drooped closed and she tried to go to sleep.

Tohru managed to sleep for what felt like half an hour before she woke up, drenched in cold sweat and shaking like crazy. Not wanting to trouble anyone, she decided that she was only warm from her blankets and kicked off her pyjama bottoms and lay back down in her sweat covered bed in her singlet and underwear. The air surrounding was like ice to her cold skin, yet she felt so warm that she didn't care and closed her eyes once more, desperate for sleep.

Tohru woke up several times during the night, but she wasn't worried, just rather annoyed. This was a regular occurrence for her and she was determined not to let it get the best of her. On her fourth awakening at 4:30 in the morning, Tohru decided that trying to continue her sleep was pointless and retrieved her robe from her desk chair and headed to the bathroom, ready for a 'wake-up' shower. Her skin was still cold and she had goose-bumps all over, but she felt so hot that she decided to run the water at a cool temperature instead of the traditional heat that was welcome every morning.

Tohru stepped into the shower and gasped as the water hit her skin. She could not believe how much it hurt. The best way Tohru would describe it to anyone would be to say that it was like someone pricking you with pins all over your body unexpectedly. She let a tear escape her eye and washed her hair and skin free of the left over mud from the night before. Ten minutes later, Tohru left the bathroom, not a trace of steam following her as she proceeded to do her morning chores.

First she stripped her bead of the dirty bed sheets and threw them into the washing machine; she then washed the dishes from yesterday's meals and began cooking that morning's breakfast for everyone. When the meal was cooked, Tohru kept it warm in the oven, turned to a low setting, before she headed off to clean up the mess she left in the bathroom before Kyou or Yuki should awaken and wish to have a shower.

At six o'clock, Tohru had finished her chores and knelt, now dressed in her clean school uniform, at the table with a pair of mittens in front of her, ready to get up and pull the food out of the oven at the first sign of company. The table had been set and Tohru had even placed a vase of freshly picked roses in the centre of the table. Tohru loved roses, especially the white ones, just like her mother did.

With thoughts of her mother entering her head, Tohru let another tear slide down her cheek. Her head dropped and she began whispering under her breath. "Mom, I love you so much... why'd you have to leave me?" Tohru was so caught up in her little world that she didn't notice a wet haired Shigure enter the room. It was not until she heard the rustling of paper that she snapped her head up, quickly wiped her tears away and grabbed the mittens.

"Good morning, Shigure-san!" Tohru greeted the older man, with her convincing 'everything's fine' smile.

"Good morning Tohru-kun!" Shigure replied, shaking open his newspaper to the comic section.

Tohru retrieved the food from the oven and set it out before Shigure. She then poured him a glass of juice and knelt back down at her spot at the table. She knew that she dare not eat before Shigure had at least begun eating himself, so she just sat there, staring blankly at her hands folded in her lap. She jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up into the eyes of its owner.

"Dear girl, do eat something with me, I don't mind if you start now." Shigure said with a warm smile.

"Hai, Shigure-san. Arigato." Tohru said and helped herself to a small bowl of steaming rice. She ate it slowly, not wanting to fill her stomach quickly and look greedy to the man who had taken her in and offered her his home, his protection and his kindness. She had just finished and was beginning to clean up her dishes when a wet-haired Yuki walked through the door and knelt on the opposite side of the table to Tohru. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and smiled up at her.

"Good morning Honda-san"

"Good morning Sohma-kun. Please, help yourself" Tohru said, indicating to the food on the table.

Yuki smiled again and reached for a bowl, piling it with an assortment of foods and setting it before himself. Yuki picked up his chopsticks as Kyou walked in and, yawning widely, took his position on the opposite end of the table to Shigure. He didn't speak as he served his breakfast and began to eat. Tohru didn't mind his actions, this was what he was like every morning.

Tohru only sighed and cleaned up the dishes as the food from them disappeared. Yuki looked up from his meal "Honda-san, have you eaten your breakfast?" he asked as cautiously as he could.

"Why, yes I have, thank you for your concern." She smiled reassuringly and cleaned up the remaining dishes.

Tohru spent the rest of the morning making lunches for everyone, putting the larger portions of the food into the boys' lunchboxes and the smallest into her own. She closed the lids with a snap and left them on the counter. At 7:30, Yuki and Kyou came down the stairs and took their lunches and placed them in their bags. Tohru had already put her own in her bag (a replacement that she had borrowed from Yuki as her own was muddy) for fear of one of them accidently taking it.

Shigure came dashing into the room, dressed in a suit and tie, holding a briefcase in his hand. He scooped up the lunchbox and dashed out the door. "Arigato, Tohru-kun!" He yelled behind him as he raced out to the car that was there to pick him up and take him to see his publisher. The car kicked up a bit of mud as it sped off in the direction of the city.

Tohru let a small giggle escape her lips and decided that now was a better time than any to begin their walk to school. "Sohma-kun! Kyou-kun! It's time for us to leave!" She called into the lounge that the two were currently occupying. Together, the three left the house and trekked along the road to school.

Yuki and Kyou walked either side of Tohru to school, much the same as they did every morning, except this time it felt different to the boys. They felt like they were protecting her, from what, they didn't know and Tohru sensed that there was something wrong.

"Kyou-kun? Sohma-kun? What's wrong? Did you not like the breakfast I made this morning?" Tohru then clapped both hands to her face "Did it make you feel ill? Oh no!" she cried, hiding her head in her hands and, ignoring the fact that she couldn't see where she was going, continued walking forward. Kyou and Yuki reached up and forced her hands down from her eyes. They smiled reassuringly.

"It's nothing Tohru" said Kyou, "We're just still tired, that's all!"

"Oh..." was all Tohru could say, before the three of them entered the school building, just as the bell was going. Tohru looked around and saw a few girls whispering and looking toward the three of them. She suddenly sprang forward.

"Honda-san? Is something wrong?" Yuki asked, concerned by her behaviour.

"Oh I... I need to speak to a friend! I'll see you later!" she said loudly as she ran off down the corridor.

Yuki gave Kyou a quizzical look to which Kyou just shrugged. They got their books from their lockers and headed to class.

Tohru sat up the front of the class next to Saki and Arisa while Yuki, Kyou and their friendly acquaintances occupied the back. Tohru just gazed at the board and the teacher, occasionally taking notes and answering questions directed at her. Most of the time though, she was thinking about how lucky she was to be living at the Sohma house. She was extremely grateful that they had taken her in and even more so that she hadn't told anyone that she was living with them, not even her friends. Yuki and Kyou couldn't understand why, but they guessed that she had her reasons.

The bell signalled the end of class and Kyou watched as Tohru gathered her books and, hugging them tightly to her chest, quickly left the room. Yuki was engaged in a conversation with a fellow classmate when Kyou nudged him in the ribs with his elbow.

Yuki glared at him, then immediately looked up and saw that Tohru was no longer in the room. Nerves began to swirl in his stomach as he wondered where she had gone and furthermore, why her friends hadn't gone with her. He wasn't left to his thoughts for very long when he was once more engaged in a conversation by two more classmates. Kyou let out an annoyed sigh and picked up his books and left the room quickly.

"Baka nezumi..." Kyou muttered under his breath as he put his books away in his locker. He decided to go to Tohru's locker to see if she was still there, but all he found was a closed door. Kyou was not normally the type to worry, but since he knew that Tohru was in such a delicate condition (how delicate, he did not know) his concern for her well-being grew greater and he began his search.

It was near the end of recess and Kyou thought he must have looked everywhere, until he looked across the grounds and saw Tohru sitting on a bench all by herself, her head bowed and her hands twisting themselves up in her lap. He walked cautiously over to her, but with her bowed head she didn't see him coming. Kyou stopped a foot in front of her and knelt down on the grass, looking up into her face.

Tohru had her eyes closed, her face was expressionless, but every now and again, her face would twitch into a grimace and relax once more. Kyou put his hand on her knee and her eyes snapped open.

"Kyou-kun! What are you doing here? Are you alright? Is Sohma-kun alright? Are you sure that you're both not ill from my cooking this morning?" Tohru asked, panic sweeping through her like a flood.

"I want to know if _you're_ al-"

"Oh there's the bell!" Tohru said suddenly as the bell began to ring, signalling the students to gather their books "Come on Kyou-kun, we'll be late if we don't hurry!" Tohru stood up, grabbing Kyou's hand and dragging him along with her. Kyou ran with her to the entrance of the building where Tohru released his hand and went quickly to her locker. She had gathered her books in a matter of seconds before slamming her locker shut with a surprising force and heading off to her next class.

Classes were much the same as they usually were, except Tohru didn't engage in any form of conversation with her friends, or with anyone for that matter. She didn't even reply to the note Yuki had passed down to her like she normally did, she just folded it up and pocketed it. Kyou and Yuki tried to catch her after class was over so they could eat lunch together, but Tohru left the room so quickly that it was impossible to find her amongst the sea of students.

"There she goes again..." commented Yuki, as the last bell went for the day and Tohru escaped from the room quickly.

"And we won't see her until tonight" Kyou said to a saddened Yuki.

"I know... I wish we could help her."

Kyou just nodded in agreement and the two began walking home.

"What was so important to discuss with those two that you couldn't come and look for her with me?" Kyou suddenly snapped at Yuki.

Yuki stopped in his tracks and bent his head down. "I don't think Tohru wanted us to see her like this... I think she just needed time alone, that's why I-"

"I suppose you're right..." Kyou gave up instantly, "she didn't seem like she wanted me there at all, with the way she behaved."

Yuki began walking again with Kyou at his side. Both boys felt at a loss as to what they'd do if Tohru didn't get better soon. They had no idea why her mood had changed so dramatically, but they knew that they didn't like it and silently made a pact between them, that they'd stop at nothing until she was happy again.

AN: Thanks for reading my latest installment! I've decided to update chapters every 2 weeks (maybe less if I'm in a really good mood) so please stay patient with me and I hope to recieve your feedback soon!!

-X-Nefertiri-X-


	3. A Little Secret

AN: Once again, thank you to all who have added me to your alert lists, to their favourite author lists, those who have added this story to their favourite stories list and to those who take that little bit of extra time to type me up a review! Thank you all! You have no idea what this does to my self esteem :)

I meant to update yesterday, but unfortunate circumstances prevented me from doing so. So here's the next chapter!

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Chapter Three - A Little Secret

Tohru arrived at work an hour after she had left school. She felt extremely bad for having avoided Yuki and Kyou all day, but she couldn't help it, she felt like she didn't have a choice. Tohru got stuck into her work immediately after she had changed. She always found that the best way to keep her mind occupied was to work as hard as she could, for as long as she could. Tohru always felt tired after doing such extensive work, but she never let anyone know, she didn't want them to worry about her.

The elevator doors opened next to her and she was immediately jumped on by an over excited Momiji and with a 'poof', he turned into a rabbit.

"Momiji-kun!" Tohru said in surprise as the rabbit sat in her lap, "You're lucky that I'm the only one here at the moment!" Tohru picked up Momiji and his clothes and put him in the broom closet. Within a matter of seconds, there was another 'poof' and Tohru suspected that Momiji had turned back into a human once again. Momiji soon stepped out of the closet, fully clothed and turned to face Tohru.

"Tohru, what's wrong?" Momiji asked, as Tohru began cleaning again, keeping her eyes glued to the wooden floor.

"Nothing's wr-"

"Tohru! I thought we didn't keep any secrets from each other!?" Momiji pouted, kneeling down to Tohru's level and putting his face close to hers.

Tohru looked up and laughed. Momiji still held the same face and lent in ever so slightly closer to Tohru's face, making her laugh even more.

"Momiji-kun really, if there were something wrong I'd tell you"

"And I thought we didn't lie to each other either!" Momiji exclaimed, leaning back onto his heels.

Tohru sighed and looked Momiji in the eye. There was really no winning with him. "Momiji-kun," Tohru sighed "I will tell you, but you must _promise_ that you will not breathe a word of this to _anyone_"

Momiji smiled and gave a mock salute to Tohru. He then moved as close to the girl as he possibly could before she began her story.

"In this world, there are people who... people who like to hurt other people because they are angry or upset with someone, because they have done something that seems wrong to them... Do you follow so far?"

Momiji nodded his head and urged Tohru to continue.

"Well in school there is this... dare I say... 'Fan club' that is obsessed with Sohma-kun. They've seen me walking to and from school with him and Kyou-kun, and they've decided that they don't like that... So on the way here a few weeks ago, five of them surrounded me."

Momiji grabbed Tohru's hand and held it tightly "Did they hurt you Tohru?"

"Well, I won't say that they didn't try..."

Momiji lent his head against Tohru's shoulder and nuzzled into the crook of her neck.

"They surrounded me and began making all sorts of threats. They asked me so many questions about why I was hanging around with Yuki and Kyou and 'what made me so special', I took too long to answer some of them so they all took a swing at me and I... I still have a few bruises."

Momiji was beginning to sniffle and suddenly launched himself onto Tohru. He hugged her for about five seconds before changing into the rabbit again. Tohru sighed as the rabbit blinked up at her sadly.

"Oh... That's not all, is it Tohru? There's still more to the story, isn't there?"

"Yes, there's more... but I think that side is best left for another time."

There was a 'poof' and a cloud of smoke as Momiji transformed back into a human right in front of her. Tohru turned away blushing, while Momiji quickly pulled on his clothes. Tohru turned around once Momiji had declared that he was decent and she stood up.

"Why don't you tell Yuki and Kyou? Maybe they could help?"

"As much as I want to, I can't. It would only make matters worse and I don't think I want that."

"You will talk to them a little more won't you? You can't cut them out completely."

"I suppose you're right," Tohru admitted "how am I meant to get to know them when I don't speak to them? Thank you Momiji-kun."

Momiji stood next to Tohru and held her hand. "Promise me you won't keep anything from me anymore?"

Tohru sighed and looked down upon the wide-eyed boy. "I promise."

Momiji smiled and Tohru smiled back at him. Checking her wrist watch, Tohru found the time to be 8 o'clock. She made her excuses to Momiji once again, saying that she had to leave to cook dinner for the Sohma's, changed back into her school uniform and headed out of the door.

Yuki and Kyou sat in the lounge just next to the door. Neither of them were speaking. They were both listening intently for the sound of footsteps on the decking, listening for the sound of Tohru coming back to them. They hadn't seen her all day and were anxious to speak with her, both itching to ask her why, why she hadn't spoken to them all day, why she was avoiding them, why she wasn't happy.

The slow slap of shoes on decking met their ears and both boys looked up to the door. Moments later it slid open and Tohru stepped inside, shaking her long hair out of her face. She hung up the bag she had borrowed from Yuki on a hook and made her way into the kitchen. Yuki and Kyou heard the clanging of pots and pans and exchanged quizzical looks.

"Are we invisible?" whispered Kyou to Yuki, holding up his arm and patting it, as if to see if it was still there.

"We need to talk to her, tonight... after dinner."

Kyou nodded and the two entered the kitchen.

Tohru was trying to busy herself the best she could so she wouldn't have to pay any attention to the boys, but it was unavoidable when one of them came and stood right next to her and served himself a glass of water.

"Kyou-kun!" Tohru exclaimed unexpectedly, making Kyou choke on the water he was trying to swallow."I'm so sorry!" Tohru slapped him on the back a few times and Kyou gasped as air came rushing back into his lungs. He coughed a few times, placing his hand on Tohru's shoulder, indicating that everything was ok.

"Hey, Tohru." Was his reply, as he pat her shoulder a few times, smiling warmly.

Yuki watched the scene before him with pure jealousy. Despite his concern, the green monster inside of him hated Kyou at that point. Why couldn't _he_ be the one patting Tohru's shoulder? Why couldn't _he_ be the one she was standing with right now? He tried to push these feelings aside and decided to begin a conversation.

Things were running smoothly as Shigure walked in. They were having a conversation with small talk, commenting on the strange weather, asking how Yuki's vegetable patch was after the storm, how Tohru's work was going. Before too long, the meal was cooked and the four of them knelt down at the table and marvelled at the meal before them. They thanked Tohru, before reaching forward and dishing up their food.

Tohru made sure that the Sohma's had their food before she dished up her own. After choosing very few things to eat, Tohru began eating her meal, unaware of the eyes that were upon her. Yuki, Kyou and Shigure were all watching her out of the corners of their eyes, seeing how little she was eating and how slowly she was consuming it. They silently decided to let it go just for now and continued their own meals, giving Tohru many praises, none of which she accepted.

Tohru had cleaned up the dishes, packed the leftover food in the fridge and was serving everyone tea when her vision started to go blurry. She shook her head and blinked furiously a few times which made everything come back into focus. Shigure noticed her odd behaviour and became concerned.

"Tohru-kun? Are you alright?" He questioned her gently.

The tone of his voice pulled Kyou and Yuki out of their bickering and they snapped their heads in Tohru's direction.

"Hai, Shigure-san! I just had something in my eye!" Tohru lied, bearing her confident smile "Please excuse me, but I have some washing to attend to." She finished, bowing her way out of the room.

Once Tohru had slid the door shut she bolted upstairs as fast as she could. Her head was throbbing painfully as she barged into her room, slid the door closed forcefully and turned on the light. In one swift movement, she had pulled the top draw out of her dresser and it fell with an almighty crash onto the floor. Knowing that Yuki, Kyou and Shigure would soon be on the scene, she rifled through her clothes quickly and found what she was looking for. To the sound of heavy footsteps thundering up the stairs, Tohru popped the cap of a bottle and withdrew two white tablets, slightly larger than tic tac's and shoved them into her mouth with one hand, while replacing the cap and hiding the bottle back amongst the clothes with another.

Tohru had no sooner buried the bottle amongst the clothes when Kyou ripped the door open and stumbled in, closely followed by Yuki and Shigure. The three started at Tohru sitting on the ground, with a draw of disarranged clothing in front of her. Yuki went over to her quickly and bent on one knee before her.

"Honda-san, are you alright?" he asked, peering into her face.

Tohru just nodded. With the pills still in her mouth, Tohru was working her tongue furiously so she could produce enough saliva to swallow them. She finally succeeded and answered Yuki's question with words this time.

"Hai, Sohma-kun. I am alright. Sorry to have worried you. The draw was a little stuck and I had a hard time pulling it out. I must have pulled too hard though..." She let out a small chuckle. Her story was only half true, but they didn't need to know that.

"Here, let me help you up." Yuki said while standing. He offered his hand to Tohru and she took it shyly. Yuki gave a light tug and Tohru was lifted to her feet with ease.

Shigure came over, picked up the draw and fitted it back into the dresser. He opened and closed it several times, but it just slid in and out easily, not sticking once. "Well my dear, it seems that whatever it was that was jamming your draw has now gone."

Tohru smiled meekly and stared at the floor, thank god Shigure was oblivious to the situation.

"Come Yuki, Kyou. Let us leave this young lady in peace!" Shigure smiled, attempting to sweep both boys out of the room with his widely waving arms.

Kyou ducked under his arm and quickly went to Tohru. He touched her shoulder and bent down to whisper in her ear, "Are you sure you're alright?" he asked and stared into her eyes, trying to see her true feelings in them.

"Hai, Kyou-kun. I'm fine!" She replied happily "Thank you for being worried about me, it's really sweet of you."

Kyou felt a light blush creep into his cheeks and he mentally shook himself to regain some composure. "Yeah well, don't get used to it." Kyou said, reverting back to his old, unconcerned self "I just don't want you to get hurt. I couldn't stand Shigure complaining about you not being able to cook."

Tohru giggled "Arigato, Kyou-kun." She said bowing and Kyou left the room.

Tohru waited until she heard the sound of footsteps dying away before she dropped back down onto the floor. _"That was way too close"_ she thought, breathing heavily as if she'd just run a mile. _"I suppose it wouldn't have been so bad finding out about my aspirin... it would have been worse if they found out about the other ones..."_she let her thoughts trail off. Tohru sighed and crawled up to her wardrobe on all fours. Slowly, as to not make a sound, she pulled back the door and leant inside. Reaching into a dark corner, Tohru withdrew a second bottle. She shuffled back and sat against the wall just next to the opening of the wardrobe.

"Hatori said these would help," Tohru complained, popping the cap of this bottle this time "But it's been almost three weeks and they haven't done anything!"

Tohru looked around the room as she withdrew a single capsule from the bottle, one end was blue, the other white. Tohru then retrieved a drink bottle from her desk and sucked some water from it, she then threw the capsule into her mouth and swallowed it with the water. She placed the lid back on the bottle and read the label for the second time that day.

"Anti-depressants," she read in a somewhat unamused, frustrated tone, "prescribed for Honda, Tohru. Take one every twelve hours for three weeks." Tohru groaned "At the end of the three week period, come back for a check-up. Dr. Hatori Sohma." Tohru got back onto her hands and knees and placed the bottle gently back into its hiding space before sliding the closet door shut.

Downstairs, the Sohma men were having an argument of sorts, each saying something different about when to confront Tohru.

"I say we do it now, while she's cornered!" Kyou said, banging his fist on the table.

"Baka neko! Do you want her to hate you forever?" Yuki shot back with a glare.

"Well then what do you suggest, oh mighty prince?" Kyou asked, sarcasm spilling out of his mouth.

"I say, we wait 'till tomorrow. It's the weekend! It gives Tohru a chance to escape if she needs to and it won't be so much pressure on her."

"Hmm... good thinking Yuki" Shigure said while stroking the non-existent beard on the tip of his chin. "No doubt Tohru will appreciate that much from us."

"Fine, whatever. I'm going to bed." Kyou said, standing up abruptly and stalking out of the room.

"Well Yuki, it's off to bed with you! Chop, chop!" Shigure began clapping his hands behind his young cousin and chased him out of the room.

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AN: Well that's the end of another chapter. As always, be kind my lovely readers, i appreciate constructive criticism.

The next installment will be here in about 2 weeks. I'm sorry the chapter updates are spread so far apart, but I am in year 12 this year and that has to have first priority.

-X-Nefertiri-X-


	4. Sensitive Subject

AN: So here's the newest chapter. I'm sorry I didn't update on Sunday, but it was Mother's Day so I was kinda busy with that.

This chapter is dedicated to all my loyal readers who wait for me to update and follow this story without getting annoyed at what I'm writing... And also to my best friend, who always holds my hand when I need comforting.

Disclaimer: Just reminding everyone of the obvious, I do not own Fruits Basket :( or receive any profit from my works. This is done purely for fun and to increase my writing skills.

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Chapter Four - Sensitive Subject

The night was restless for Tohru. She tossed and turned in her sleep; becoming twisted in her sheets only worsened the struggle in her nightmare. She awoke at two in the morning, once again drenched in sweat and forehead burning. She rolled herself out of bed and hit the cold floor. She lay there for a moment, allowing the boards to cool her face. Noticing the that the sheets were immobilising her, she took a minute to untangle herself and, becoming exceedingly frustrated, finally succeeded and stood up to throw the sheet down onto the floor in anger.

There was a sudden rush of blood to her head and Tohru became extremely dizzy. She sat on the edge of her bed and waited till the dizziness had subsided. "Stupid sheet" she cursed, glaring at the lifeless white sheet she had thrown on the ground "This is all your fault." She shimmied out of her pyjama pants once again to escape from the heat and was clad in her underwear and singlet once more.

Tohru lay back down in her bed and tried to go back to sleep. She lay there for hours, staring at the ceiling as the colours changed from black to silver, then to a pale red and finally to gold. Tohru felt as if she was in some sort of trance. She hadn't moved a muscle since she lay down all those hours ago. The only motor skills she seemed to have, were control over her blinking when her eyes could no longer stand the air around them, and the ability to swallow saliva as it pooled under her tongue. She just lay on top of her bed, uncovered and sweating like she had just been playing tag.

The alarm to her left went off with such a loud musical tone that Tohru jumped up into a sitting position, suddenly becoming lively again. She reached over and quickly turned the alarm off, praying that no-one else had heard it and been woken up because of it.

Tohru stepped out of bed slowly, retrieved the sheet off the floor and made her bed. She then took her robe off her desk chair and headed toward the bathroom. Once there, Tohru felt a little cooler and opted for a warmer shower than yesterdays. She turned on the water and took her clothes off with shaking hands.

Once the rest of her body was exposed to the air, her skin erupted in goose-bumps. Tohru ran a finger lightly down the side of her back to feel them and cried out in pain at the sensitivity of her skin. Tohru quickly turned off the water. The only running water now, was the tears that streamed down Tohru's face from the pain.

"Ok, ok..." Tohru tried to calm herself down "So a shower is out of the question... I'll just..." her eyes darted around the room, searching for another option. Her eyes fell upon the fresh wash cloth she had placed there yesterday "That's the one" she said, smiling to herself weakly, despite the tears in her eyes.

Tohru filled the sink with warm water and soaked the wash cloth in it. She wrung it out and began to wipe it over her skin. She repeated this pattern many times until she had washed her entire body twice over, wincing every time the cloth touched the skin on her back and causing a new wave of tears to flood from her eyes.

Tohru slowly slipped on her robe and vacated the bathroom. She was beginning to dress in a simple white button-up shirt and beige cargo-pants, not her usual Saturday morning get up, when she 

heard the unmistakable sound of Kyou stumbling into the hall. This sound sent a sudden wave of panic into Tohru. She slapped her hand over her mouth and her eyes opened wide. She had spent so long in the bathroom carefully washing her skin, that she had lost track of the time and had not yet made breakfast.

Tohru raced out of her room and down the stairs. Shigure was not yet sitting at the table, this was something she took to her advantage. Slowing down her actions, she began to make breakfast with determination.

By the time Shigure did sit down, breakfast was almost ready and Tohru just added the finishing touches to make the meal complete. Shigure smiled as he watched the girl work. He found it odd that she knew where everything in the kitchen was supposed to go and he didn't even know where to find a spoon. He laughed inwardly and received a glass of juice from Tohru with welcoming hands.

Yuki and Kyou entered the room in the fashion in which they always did. Yawning and stretching, rubbing the sleep out of their eyes, hair tousled from a good night's sleep. They knelt down at the table and greeted Shigure and Tohru, then helped themselves to breakfast.

Tohru had tied her long hair back into a high ponytail before serving herself another small portion of food, an action which didn't go unnoticed by the three Sohma's. Shigure folded his paper and set it down, deciding that now was as good a time as any to confront Tohru. He folded his hands on the table in front of him and slightly nodded to Kyou and Yuki, who were both looking at him. The two got the message and set their bowls down.

Tohru noticed the behaviour in all of them and immediately panicked. "Was the meal not to your liking? Have I become so clumsy in my cooking? I'm so sorry! I will throw it all away and start again!" She rambled, moving to stand.

Shigure just lifted a hand and smiled warmly. "No, Tohru-kun, please. The meal is as lovely as ever, we just wish to talk to you, if you would allow us that much."

Tohru sighed, relieved. "Of course! Sohma-san has always been so kind to be that I would happily talk to him if he wished to discuss something!"

Shigure smiled and rested his elbows on the table, his folded hands came up and he rested his chin upon them. He examined her for a moment, seeing the tired look in her eyes, her dry lips, her pale skin and how it clung to her body a little tighter.

Tohru felt his eyes sweep over her and suddenly she felt vulnerable. She didn't like it one bit. Suddenly, it hit her and she knew what he wanted to discuss. Tohru stood up quickly, desperate for an escape. Several dozen excuses ran through her head and the first one she managed to get out of her dry mouth was the single word 'milk', which she shouted to the ceiling fan before tearing out of the house.

Shigure sighed deeply and Kyou crossed his arms over his chest. "It ain't gonna be easy getting that one to talk."

Yuki lost his appetite and wrapped the bowl in some plastic and placed it in the fridge. He couldn't make up his mind if he should go after her or not, so he just stood there in the doorway, looking out into the forest before him.

Kyou, unable to be swayed from his meal by the girl's actions, had finished his breakfast and mumbled something about going somewhere quiet before disappearing out the door. Shigure left the room soon after, heading to his office to continue writing his novel and that left Yuki to go upstairs and shut himself in his room.

Yuki threw himself onto his bed and shut his eyes. He was trying to picture Tohru the way she was when she first started living with them, so full of life, so clumsy yet so carefree. Yuki frowned, wondering why she wouldn't tell them. It hurt his feelings deeply to think that Tohru didn't trust him after he trusted her with the secret of the Sohma curse. Yuki got off his bed and sat down at his desk, deciding that he'd at least attempt to do some homework so he wouldn't feel so useless.

Yuki looked up to the ceiling as he heard the unmistakeable sound of Kyou's footsteps on the roof "typical cat" he muttered and sorted through some papers on his desk.

Kyou had climbed up onto the roof and lay down on the warm tiles. He was contemplating whether or not he should fall asleep when he heard a sniffle coming from the other side of the roof. Kyou quickly rolled onto his stomach and crawled up to the peak of the roof. Once there Kyou glanced down and saw the huddled figure of Tohru, her arms wrapped tightly around her legs and her head on her knees.

Seeing her like this made Kyou even more worried about her than he had been before. What had happened to the girl who could solve everything? What had happened to the girl who always laughed and smiled with them? Slowly, Kyou crawled over to her and sat down next to her.

"You know," he began, making Tohru's wide eyes shoot up to his face, "I don't think this is where the milk is."

Tohru let out a half laugh and brought her chin to her knees, hugging her legs tighter.

"You can talk to me Tohru, I'll listen. And even if you don't want to tell me what's wrong now, I'm here for your support, no-matter what." Kyou finished, smiling.

Kyou reached out and put a hand on her back. Tohru gasped in pain as his hand came in contact with the material on her back. Kyou quickly withdrew his hand and looked at the spot he had touched.

"Tohru?"

Tohru was determined not to look at Kyou and instead focussed her attention on a bird singing on a branch not too far off.

"Tohru, is something wrong with your back?"

Tohru sighed and decided that she would at least tell him that much, it wasn't like she was giving away her big secret or anything. "It's... just a little sensitive."

"A little? Tohru I barely even touched you!"

"Well maybe really sensitive." She admitted, trying to smile her way through it. "I'm fine, Kyou-kun. Really."

"I'm not believing that, no way." Said Kyou stubbornly.

Tohru suddenly began sobbing uncontrollably and Kyou looked at her, expressionless. Deciding what to do, Kyou grabbed her hand and got to his feet, pulling her up with him.

"Let's go back inside,"

Tohru shook her head.

"Look, if you're going to cry you may as well do it someplace comfortable."

Tohru allowed herself to be steered over to the edge of the roof and climbed down the ladder before Kyou. When she reached the bottom, she realised that she had the perfect opportunity to run away, but for some reason or another, she felt that she didn't want to.

Kyou climbed down the ladder after her and grabbed her hand once again. The two walked into the house together, unseen by Shigure as they passed his office. Kyou led Tohru up to her room and shut the door behind them. Kyou released her hand and she immediately went over to her bed and sat at the head of it, crossing her legs. Kyou followed her and did the same at the end of the bed.

"Kyou-kun. Kyou-kun I... Kyou-kun I want to... I want to tell you..." Tohru tried getting the words out, which proved to be a difficult task.

Kyou just stared at her sympathetically and waited for her to say what she needed to say.

"Kyou-kun... You know those... those Prince Yuki Fan Club girls?" Tohru wondered aloud in a half whisper.

"What about those girls?"

Tohru didn't answer right away, but instead unbuttoned the top three buttons of her shirt while Kyou looked away, blushing slightly.

"Kyou-kun... see for yourself."

Kyou was still looking away. See for himself? That didn't sound very good to him, so he turned his head back in Tohru's direction and his mouth dropped open as Tohru pulled the collar of the shirt down past her shoulder.

Shaking, Kyou placed his fingertips on the fainted bruise that Tohru had revealed to him. She didn't wince, but the stained skin was still there and gave an outline to how big it was. Slowly and gently, Kyou traced what he thought was the outline of the bruise and looked up into Tohru's eyes. "About that big, right?" He asked.

Tohru just nodded, trying to hold her tears back. Tohru hated crying, especially in front of people and even though she had been crying almost every night for a month, why should she make an exception? Yet still she let the tears pool and run down her cheeks.

Kyou lifted his hand to her face and wiped away her tears. He then leaned back, staring at Tohru with saddened eyes as she replaced her shirt back over her shoulder, this time wincing as the light material shifted against her back.

Kyou noticed her wince and stopped her movement. "Tohru... Tell me what's wrong."

Tohru just shook her head multiple times, tears flying off her pale cheeks.

Kyou scooted over next to her and gently put an arm around her juddering shoulders. She inclined her head into him and came in contact with his chest. With a 'poof', Kyou had changed into his zodiac form and now as the ginger cat; he stepped lightly into her lap and curled up there, trying to offer comfort.

Tohru picked up the cat and hugged it tightly to her chest. Kyou surprisingly didn't mind so much and soon enough, began purring in Tohru's ear.

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AN: As always, reviews are more than welcome. Actually I'd prefer if you did review, just so i know your opinions of the story so far and so I can see if I'm appealing to you readers.

Next chapter in 2 weeks time!

-X-Nefertiri-X-


	5. Sleeping

AN: Please forgive me for not updating when I said I would.

This chapter is for everyone who's stuck with this story, no matter how weird and dramatic and incorrect it gets.

So, for everyone who actually likes this story, this is for you. I hope this chapter doesn't dissappoint you.

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Chapter Five - Sleeping

When Tohru and Kyou came downstairs together at around midday, they were both laughing at something Kyou had said. Shigure popped his head out of his office and looked at the back of the two while they walked towards the kitchen. _"What is going on here?"_Shigure wondered tapping his pen to his chin _"It's as if someone cast a happy spell over them and forgot about me."_Shigure sulked and retreated back into his office.

"Tohru, you know you can drop thehonorific from my name now right? I don't mind if you just call me Kyou," He told Tohru, smiling.

"Ah... Okay... Kyou..."

"That's better!" Kyou laughed.

"So! Kyou... what would you like for lunch today?" Tohru asked, smiling sweetly as she did so.

"Ah, I don't care. Just don't give me any leeks!" Kyou answered, making Tohru giggle.

Tohru felt a little happier, now that she had told Kyou one of her secrets. She knew that he would help her through it and that he would protect her. The only problem was, he couldn't be with her all the time.

He stared at her as she began chopping up the ingredients. _"Man, she looks so peaceful..."_Kyou thought as Tohru began boiling some water. Kyou could understand why she was so hesitant to tell him what was wrong, the bracelet around his wrist was enough of a reminder of that. She had been through a lot and likely more, considering that what he was told was only a fraction of the whole problem. He could only hope that with his help, he could improve the situation for her.

Lunch was being served to Shigure and Kyou when Yuki walked through the door, bearing a basket of assorted vegetables and staring at the floor. Tohru felt extremely ashamed. How could she have let herself get so caught up in her own emotions and forget to think about everyone else? Sure, she did her chores around the home, but that wasn't enough.

"Sohma-kun?"

Yuki's eyes snapped up and came to rest on Tohru's face. He got the sudden urge to run over to her and hold her, never to let her go again, but common sense restrained him. Instead he put his hand on her shoulder and looked deep into her eyes. The two stayed like that for a short while, until the sound of Kyou choking on his food made Tohru tear her eyes away from Yuki's and go slap Kyou on the back.

By the time all four of them were eating together, Tohru's happiness was wearing off. She became increasingly frustrated with her chopsticks and when the Sohma's had finished their meals, Tohru had eaten only half of her petite serving and declared that she was no longer hungry. Tohru cleared the dishes away and began washing them in the kitchen.

Yuki entered no too long after. "Honda-san? Would you like some help?" He asked politely.

"But Sohma-kun, your family has done so much for me, I couldn't possibly ask you to help!"

"My family may have done a lot for you, but I know I haven't..." Yuki faded, staring down at his toes.

Tohru sensed Yuki's 'useless' feeling and told him that she 'would love some help' and the two finished the dishes together. Neither really spoke a word, but the silence was comfortable, so comfortable in fact that Tohru's emotions began getting the better of her and tears threatened to fall from her clouded eyes.

Once the two were finished, Tohru felt the need to be alone for a few minutes so she could get her current state back in order. So she excused herself with a bow to Yuki, so he could not see her tear-filled eyes and made her way upstairs as quickly as possible.

As soon as Tohru had entered her room and successfully closed her door behind her, she collapsed onto the cold wooden floor and began crying uncontrollably, though still making a conscious effort to be silent. Her body tensed and relaxed repeatedly, her limbs flailed about and her breath was only short, she was gasping, as if running out of oxygen.

Tohru felt pitiful and weak. She wondered why she could not be strong like Yuki and Kyou. She wondered why she could not seal her emotions away and bury them somewhere deep inside herself, never to have them resurface again.

Tohru's back hit the floor as she writhed about in her emotional agony. This sudden contact with something so hard made her let out a silent scream and she cried even harder. Tohru rolled herself back onto her stomach and clawed her way across the floor to her wardrobe, sweat formed on her brow and ran down her face, mingling with the tears. She ripped open the door and pulled herself inside. Once there, she reached into the back corner and pulled out the all too familiar bottle.

Tohru used her already aching arms to push herself back out of the wardrobe and moved into a sitting position. She pulled off the cap impatiently and tipped out four pills. Not thinking about the consequences of taking them all at the same time, Tohru popped them into her mouth and dragged her body over to her dresser on top of which her drink bottle sat. She reached up a shaking hand and knocked it off, sending the bottle crashing to the floor. Tohru picked it up, sucked a mouthful of water from it and swallowed the pills along with it.

Breathing heavily, Tohru threw both bottles into her wardrobe and rolled the door shut, she then crawled over to her balcony and shoved its door open. A cool breeze danced across her face and she closed her eyes, enjoying its touch on her burning skin. She moved out to sit on the decking and closed the door behind her.

After Tohru had left the kitchen, Yuki proceeded to visit his perverted cousin in his office. Yuki didn't often seek out Shigure, so it was no surprise to see the dog's reaction.

"Yuki! I must have been blessed! My dear cousin coming to visit me like this!" Shigure began, jumping out of his chair and steering Yuki into the room.

"Yes, I agree that it is quite unusual. Something I don't intend to make a habit of."

"Ah Yuki," Shigure wiped a pretend tear from his eye and seating himself behind his desk "you hurt me."

Yuki just shook his head and sat down in the chair across from Shigure. "I can't tell if she's getting better or worse."

"Better, I hope. But I understand what you mean. She's a complicated girl that Tohru. Hiding her emotions away like that must be a way to make her feel stronger."

"But all she's doing is making it harder on herself!"

"Then maybe we need to make it easier for her."

Yuki looked at his cousin and quirked and eyebrow "How do you suppose we do that?"

"The way you've been saying to," said Shigure simply, "just let her know you're there!"

It was easier said than done, Yuki believed, quickly rising from his chair and leaving the office before Shigure had the chance to make him stay and listen to a page from his novel. He walked lazily into the lounge and flopped down on the carpeted rug underneath a small table. Looking around to make sure no-one was watching him, Yuki drew out a book from under the table and flipped it open on the first page.

There, staring back at him was his own face and Shigure's, the two of them were standing in that very room. Yuki turned a few pages, past pictures of Kyou tormenting a crying Momiji... Kisa and Hiro holding hands by a lake... Yuki stopped when he found the one he was looking for, a photo of himself and Kyou holding hands with Tohru as they walked towards the camera which, back then, was held by Shigure who had been trying to catch the three of them in a happy moment together.

Yuki observed their smiles, how they looked so carefree. He was surprised to see that even Kyou had managed a grin. His eyes stopped on Tohru's face and he stared into the picture's eyes. They looked so full of life, so innocent and did not seem to carry the burdens that they did now.

Yuki sat there for hours, looking through all the photographs of Tohru's smiles and lightly brushing his fingertips over each one. He didn't notice that it was slowly getting dark, nor that Kyou had joined him in the room until he was nudged out of his daydreaming state.

"Yuki, you seen Tohru?" Kyou asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Honda-san and I washed up after lunch, but after that I haven't seen her, no."

"Well Shigure decided to order take-out so when you see her, tell her that she doesn't have to cook tonight and to come join us."

"Yeah, I will... Don't you think it's a bit strange that neither of us have seen her all afternoon?"

"I do, but you know, she's probably working on that damn vegetable patch of yours."

"I don't think so. She went upstairs after we had finished in the kitchen and I've been in here all afternoon. I would have heard her if she left the house."

"Yuki, you were so out of it you didn't even hear me talking to you before I nudged you."

Yuki blinked a few times "Really?"

"Would I have said that if I were lying?" Kyou asked, moving his hands to his hips.

"I suppose not..." Yuki gave in and rose from the table "We should look for her anyway."

"There's no need" said Shigure as he entered the room in all his good timing.

"No need?" Kyou repeated "Why?"

"Because my dear sweet Tohru-chan is asleep upstairs."

"You perverted little..."

"Neko!" Yuki interrupted his furious cousin, "I'm going to check on her, do you want to order now?"

Kyou just nodded his head and threw a dirty look at Shigure who backed into a corner, cowering.

Yuki had already started upstairs, climbing one stair at a time, slowly, trying to make as little sound as possible so as not to disturb Tohru in the least. Once Yuki reached Tohru's door, he gently slid it open and poked his head inside. "Honda-san?" Yuki opened the door a little wider and stepped inside.

There was no sleeping figure in Tohru's bed, no gentle rise and fall of sheets as she breathed peacefully, just crisp lavender sheets looking as if they'd never been touched by human hands.

Yuki took a few steps towards the bed before stopping abruptly when he heard a loud 'thunk' come from out on the balcony. Yuki strode over to the door and slid it open in a flash. There lay Tohru, one arm draped through the railing bars preventing her from falling off, the other used as a pillow to cushion her head.

Yuki knelt down beside her and looked into her troubled face. Her brows were knitted together and beads of sweat were lingering on her forehead. Tohru's cheeks were tinged with pink and she seemed to be breathing heavily. Without pausing to think, Yuki gathered the sleeping figure up in his arms, being careful not to hold her to his chest. He was surprised to find, that she hardly weighed anything at all. Yuki walked carefully out of the room and down the stairs to Shigure's office. Kyou spotted him walking with her from the kitchen and ran just ahead of him to open the office door.

"Call Hatori, now!" Yuki ordered as he placed Tohru down on a conveniently placed futon, Kyou rushed down the hall towards the phone.

Shigure hurried over to Tohru and placed a calm hand upon her forehead, "She's burning up" he said to Yuki, "Go get a cloth and come water".

Yuki was on his feet before Shigure had finished his sentence and was out the door in a flash. Within moments, he had returned with the cloth and a jug of water from the fridge, Kyou following directly behind him.

"Hatori said he'll be here as soon as he can" Kyou reported, looking sadly down at Tohru as Shigure dampened the cloth in the jug of water and lay it over her forehead.

Tohru's cringing face relaxed under the cool of the cloth for a moment before her hand came flying out of nowhere and she ripped it away from her head. Goose bumps appeared on her arms and she began to shiver. Yuki noticed this and pulled a comforter out of a cupboard and knelt beside her to wrap it around her, then he took the cloth out of her hand and placed it on her forehead once more. This time, she didn't take it off.

Kyou knelt down next to her also and brushed a few strands of hair away from her face. Yuki looked up at him, but Kyou didn't acknowledge him, he just stayed staring at Tohru, concern showing clearly in his eyes.

Shigure left the room and stood at the front door, waiting for Hatori's arrival so he could lead him straight to Tohru. Shigure sighed and leant against the wall. He ran a hand through his hair and closed his eyes, "_Tohru... my poor girl... why won't you tell me what's wrong?" _he wondered to himself.

Shigure had been standing in that same position for five minutes when he heard a car pull up outside and a door quickly open. Shigure had barely opened the door to the house when Hatori came swiftly through. "Where is she, Shigure?" Hatori demanded.

Shigure didn't even stop to play cute with Hatori, instead he sped off towards his office with him in tow and stood back so Hatori could enter before him.

Hatori stepped into the room to find Tohru lying on a futon, rugged up with a cloth on her head and two boys leaning over her, both unaware of his presence. Too bad he didn't have time to sit back and watch how the scene played out.

"Kyou, Yuki, both of you, please get out." Hatori ordered, trying to sound at least a little polite.

"But, Hatori..." Kyou began to protest.

"OUT!" Hatori yelled, making both boys jump to their feet and walk out of the room, feeling slightly scared of Hatori, who normally had a calm aura about him and never yelled at anyone.

Hatori knelt down by Tohru and pulled the comforter off her to find her arm. He checked the pulse on her wrist... It was beating too fast. Hatori removed the cloth from her forehead and replaced it with his hand. Feeling how hot her temperature was, he snapped open his case and retrieved a thermometer and placed it in her mouth.

Hatori waited out one of the longest minutes he had ever experienced before he pulled the thermometer out of her mouth and checked the temperature.

* * *

AN: Okay, so reviews are most welcome and preferred. I wasn't sure about this chapter, but I'd really like some feedback on it.

Tohru's mood swings are particularly weird in this chapter... I guess I'd had a bad day when I wrote this chapter.

-X-Nefertiri-X-


	6. Doctor's Orders

AN: Here you go, a present from me to you. Chapter 6 of this fan fiction is just below, so read to your heart's content! ... Or until the end of the chapter...

A review from **loretta537**: "oh i hope tohru gets better soon. and i hope that the yuki fan club gets charged with attacking tohru and stalking yuki, and lets see the sohma family is rich and own quite a few businesses so i wonder what would happen to the yuki fan club girls parents?"

Thank you for this review, I'd almost forgotten about how to punish the fan club for being evil scums of the earth in this story (even if it was my own doing) and you reminded me of that! This chapter has nothing about getting them back in it, but I promise you that it will come up within the next few chapters.

I don't really feel like I need to do yet ANOTHER disclaimer. Everyone who is reading this knows that I don't own Fruits Basket or recieve any profit for my writing. Oh, I guess I just wrote another disclaimer right there huh?

**FYI:** I'm available for Beta reading, so if anyone would like me to Beta their story for them, I'm more than happy to do so.

So without any more blabbing on... I give to you, chapter 6!

* * *

Chapter Six - Doctor's Orders.

Hatori looked at the temperature reading on the thermometer and sighed, a little relieved, it was nothing too serious. He then proceeded to take a syringe out of his briefcase and injected the helpless girl in a vein in her left arm. Hatori sat back on the floor beside her and peered into her pale face. He reached out and moved a sweat covered bang from her forehead and brushed it behind her ear.

"Tohru, Tohru... you haven't told them yet, have you?" the dragon whispered softly, standing up with his briefcase. Taking one last look over his shoulder at the sleeping girl, Hatori opened the door and stepped out of the room, closing the door with a light snap.

As soon as Hatori was clear of the door, two strong arms grabbed his shoulders and pulled him into the kitchen. A smile grazed the doctor's lips as he looked into the eyes of his captors, Yuki and Kyou, he saw the concern they harboured for the girl and decided not to waste any of their time.

"How is she?" the teenagers asked at the same time, both leaving their hands on Hatori's shoulders.

"I'm relieved to tell you that she's going to be fine. I've given her a shot so that should help to settle her fever down."

Both boys sighed and dropped their hands from Hatori's shoulders; Kyou did so a little hesitantly.

"But why's she like this?" Kyou demanded, getting a little angry.

"I can only take a guess, but I believe that she's been working too hard lately. She's probably tired and run down and shouldering too many responsibilities."

"Damn it!" Kyou snapped, "Why couldn't she just tell us? She could just ask for some help or for a break once in a while!"

"Now Kyou, calm down. I don't think it would be wise for you to keep yelling like that." Shigure warned him from his sitting position on the kitchen counter.

"Oh yeah?" Kyou challenged, "That's it! I'm going in to see her!" Kyou jumped around Hatori and made a start from Shigure's office where Tohru still lay. Yuki however, was too quick for Kyou's actions and had grabbed the collar of his shirt and yanked him backwards, forcing Kyou to the floor.

"Where do you think you're going, baka neko?" Yuki shot at the angered cat.

"Are you deaf you damn rat? I said I'm going to see Tohru!" Kyou shouted at Yuki from his position on the floor.

"Oh really?" Yuki said coolly, looming over Kyou's face just a few feet below him, "Well you're going to have to get past me first. You're not seeing Honda-san while you're all worked up like this!"

Kyou sat up and looked down at his knees, almost disappointed with himself. "I suppose you're right..." He stood up suddenly and glared at the rat before him. "Fine!! If she wakes up, I'll be on the roof." The cat snapped and stalked out of the house before anyone could comment.

"Well now that I know Tohru isn't going to be disturbed, I think I shall take my leave now and return tomorrow to check up on her." Hatori said after remaining quiet through Yuki and Kyou's fight.

"Very well," Shigure began "We shall see you in the morning for breakfast, Hatori... though I don't know if any of us will be eating if Tohru-kun isn't cooking for us..."

"I'm sure we'll manage" Yuki shot at Shigure with a glare.

"Well, I'll be off then," Hatori sighed, waving a hand at Shigure and Yuki as he walked towards the door "I'll see you all tomorrow. Yuki, Shigure... look after Tohru."

The two men both nodded and Hatori left the two standing in the kitchen.

"If you don't mind, Shigure... I'm going to go up to my room. Can you call me if Honda-san wakes up?" Yuki asked, heading towards the stairs.

Shigure nodded again and Yuki left without another word.

The young cat stretched out on the roof and sighed. "Tohru, why won't you tell me what's wrong?" he whispered to himself, staring into the sky above him and watched the stars begin to appear one by one. Kyou's voice began to rise in anger, "It's bad enough that those 'Prince Yuki Fan-club bitches' have done that to you...But that's not all, is it?" He balled his fists and sat up quickly, "Damn it! Why won't you tell me?" Kyou hung his head between his knees and gripped his legs tightly.

Yuki froze as he heard Kyou's words from the roof above him. "Prince Yuki Fan-club...?" he stared down at his desk and the empty piece of paper he was meant to be writing his essay on, "They did WHAT!?"

Kyou heard shouting from directly below him and jumped in fright. "What are you trying to do you damn rat!? Give me a heart attack?" Kyou scolded in the general direction of the rat below him.

"Shut up, baka neko, Honda-san is still resting if you didn't remember." Yuki retorted, leaning out onto the balcony so he could get a good look at the cat.

"Hey I'm not the one down there yelling!"

"Then maybe you should stop talking to yourself so loudly that others can hear!"

Now it was Kyou's turn to freeze. "You... You heard what I said?"

"I did."

Kyou opened and closed his mouth several times; unable to find the words he was looking for.

"Why don't you start by telling me what those Fan-club girls did to Honda-san?" Yuki asked calmly, but apparently a little too calmly for Kyou.

"How about I start..." Kyou snapped "With you calling Tohru 'Honda-san'!! It's getting ridiculous! You two are best friends! You can call her Tohru, you know!"

"But what if she doesn't want me to call her Tohru?" the silver-haired teen asked meekly.

"Well, if she doesn't mind me calling her Tohru, then why should she mind you calling her Tohru?"

Yuki just shrugged and looked away from the cat. He had a good point, Yuki knew that, but he wasn't about to acknowledge that just yet.

"Alright, neko... Now tell me what those Fan-club girls did!" Yuki asked forcefully.

Kyou was a little taken aback by his cousin's abruptness, but he decided to comply and slid down the roof and jumped off, landing in front of Yuki on the balcony.

"Maybe we should sit down...?" Kyou said, before walking into Yuki's room and flopping down in his desk chair.

Yuki followed and sat on the edge of his bed, resting is elbows on his knees and preparing himself for whatever Kyou threw his way.

Downstairs, Shigure was sulking about not having Tohru able to cook him breakfast in the morning, when the delivery man came up to the front door with four bento boxes. Shigure took them and paid the man, they exchanged a few pleasantries before the man departed and the starving dog walked back into the kitchen with the bento boxes. He set them down on the bench and sighed.

"Tohru, my girl. You'll get better soon won't you?" Shigure whispered, walking down the short hallway to his office and sliding the door open slightly. He looked in upon Tohru with a sad smile and proceeded to tiptoe into the room and over to Tohru's side. He knelt down for a brief moment and placed his hand on her forehead.

"Ah, much better" Shigure smiled, feeling the Tohru's temperature had cooled down almost back to a normal state. Shigure leaned forward and kissed the tip of her nose before rising gently to his feet and vacating the room.

Kyou finished with his story and Yuki stared at the floor "They've... they've been hurting Hon-Tohru?"

Kyou just nodded and stretched a hand over his eyes, blocking out the sight of Yuki who looked like he was at breaking point.

"Why didn't she ever tell me this? I could have protected her... I could have... I could have..."

Kyou removed his hand from his eyes and looked over at his cousin. Yuki had clenched his fists and shut his eyes tightly in an attempt to stop the tears that were threatening to stream down his face. Sighing, Kyou stood up and left the room, unable to look at his distraught cousin any longer.

That night, the three Sohma men ate their bento in silence, too worried about Tohru to be able to construct any kind of conversation, that is, until Shigure broke the silence.

"You know, if you're not going to eat anymore of your dinner, Yuki, I suggest you go off to bed."

Yuki looked up at Shigure for a moment and then back down at his almost full plate of bento. Making up his mind, he stood up, dropping his chopsticks on the plate and left the room without a word.

Kyou stared at the doorway after his cousin left and banged his fists down on the table. "I'm gonna turn in too," he stated bluntly before he stood up and headed for the door with a half-hearted "night."

Shigure stood up and left the room soon after Kyou, leaving behind three hardly touched plates of bento as a task for them to clean up in the morning.

Shigure woke up and headed downstairs at 10 the next morning in a slight panic. "Ah no! Hatori! I must have missed you! Please don't tell me you've come and gone already!?" Shigure skidded along the wooden floor in his socks and managed to stop himself in time before he collided with the kitchen counter. Embarrassed, he quickly glanced around the kitchen to make sure that no-one had witnessed his little show and began making himself a coffee in a relieved silence.

Yuki entered the kitchen a few minutes later, fully clothed, hair tousled from a night of tossing and turning in his bed. He hadn't slept well last night after Kyou had broken the news to him that those stupid fan club girls had beaten up Tohru. He knelt down at the table across from Shigure and let his mind wander while his perverted cousin continued to drink his coffee.

After a few more minutes of complete silence, Kyou entered the kitchen, stomped over to the fridge, retrieved a carton of milk and downed the remainder of its contents in a flash. Wiping a small trickle of the liquid off his chin, Kyou knelt down at the table also and started scratching at the wooden surface.

Yuki was about to yell at his annoying cousin to stop when he heard voices coming from just outside. His ears almost pricked up at the noise and he was up against the door in no time, pressing his ear against the crack between the door and frame. "Tohru..." Yuki felt the name fall from his lips as he listened to her weak voice talk to Hatori.

"This isn't right..." a voice inside Yuki's head said to him as he stood there listening. Heeding the voice, the concerned teen peeled himself away from the door and went over to the kettle to make some tea. "If Tohru wants to tell me what's wrong, she'll do it in her own time... I just wish she'd do it sooner..."

Tohru sat on the decking, wrapped up in a comforter with an empty mug in her hands. Hatori sat next to her, far away enough to still be professional, but close enough to be friendly. The Sohma Doctor had just finished giving her a quick check up and now the two of them were discussing what to do about Tohru's current mental state of health and how it was affecting her physical health.

"Hatori-san, those p-pills you g-gave me aren't wo-working! No matter what, they j-just d-d-don't seem to wo-work!" Tohru cried, sobbing into the blanket wrapped around her.

Hatori stared at the broken girl next to him and put his arms around her, pulling her into a comforting hug. Tohru allowed herself to lean into the hug, knowing that the comforter would protect the dragon from transforming. Hatori pulled back and continued the conversation.

"If the pills aren't working then maybe we need to up the dosage just a little. Since you've been on them for the past few weeks, an increased dosage should start working right away."

Tohru smiled at his response, glad that the doctor was willing to help her.

"In the mean time, you need to consider staying home for a few days, or perhaps moving back in with your grandfather..."

At this suggestion, Tohru's eyes went wide. "M-m-move back i-in with G-g-grandfather? I-I couldn't possibly! I c-can't be such a b-b-burden on him!" the rice ball's sobbing was easing up ever so slightly. "And if I l-leave, what gr-gratitude will I be showing Yuki-kun, Kyou and Shigure-san? W-What will they d-do if I l-l-leave?"

Hatori smiled at her words "Alright, if you want to stay here then I don't see it as much as a problem. But I want you to stay home from school and work for a few days, okay?"

"But I-"

"No protesting on the matter, Doctors orders." Hatori said, shaking his finger at her before tapping her lightly on the nose.

Tohru wiped her eyes again, the tears seemed to have stopped. She smiled up at Hatori, believing that someone finally understood her.

* * *

AN: YAY! Tohru's alright! Aww, I want Hatori to be my doctor!

I'm hoping you enjoyed that chapter. If you find a fault in it anywhere, please tell me so i can correct it. And if you're confused with anything in this story then ask me about it and I'll be happy to explain.

Until chapter 7 then!

-X-Nefertiri-X-


	7. Better Days

AN: After recently recieving reviews for my first six chapters from **MysticSorceror** and taking into account what they had to say, I decided to take a little extra time with this chapter. No, I'm not writing to please just one person, if anything, I'm writing to please myself because I need a creative outlet. I'd really like to take this chance to thank **MysticSorceror** for their constructive criticism. It was extremely helpful when you told me what you liked and didn't like about the chapters and what needed improving. However, as everyone knows, this IS Fan Fiction and is more than likely to be different to the real thing. I cannot help it if I chose to make the characters act a certain way, because it helps with the plot of the story. But in truth yes... Maybe Yuki and Kyou have been a little too nice to each other for the past few chapters.

ANYWAY!! A big THANK YOU to all who reviewed and have stuck with this story. And HELLO to any new readers!

Now... On with the story!

* * *

Chapter Seven - Better Days

Tohru and Hatori were still outside and Yuki was beginning to feel uncomfortable, he didn't like how long they had been out there. The teenaged Sohma looked around for something to help keep his mind off it. "Eh? That's odd." he muttered to himself when he noticed the bento from last night had been cleared from the table. "Shigure? Did you clean up the bento? That's not like you."

Shigure looked up from reading the newspaper he had found under the table. "Huh? I didn't clean it up."

All three of them exchanged glances, coming to the same conclusion at the same time "Tohru!" they said together.

There was an "eek" that came from outside and quickly after, Tohru stumbled through the door, tripped over the comforter clumped up at her feet and was caught gracefully by Hatori, who had been a step or two behind her.

"Tohru! Daijoubu?" the cat asked, quickly jumping to his feet and going to her side.

"Hai, daijoubu. Arigatou Hatori-san! That would have hurt if I hit the floor!" She sighed, relieved that she had been caught in time.

The fragile girl sat down next to Yuki as Kyou and Hatori took places around the table also. Acting on an impulse, Yuki bravely took Tohru's hand in his own and played with her fingers lovingly under the table. Tohru tried as best as she could to fight off her blush as she interlocked her fingers with Yuki's and placed their hands on her knee.

"Hatori-san and I were talking this morning" Tohru began out of the blue "and we both agreed that it would be a good idea if I took some time off school and work to recover. I beg you to forgive me for asking this of you." she said, bowing into the table.

"No, no Tohru-chan! Of course you can stay home from school! I wouldn't have it any other way!" the author cooed, causing several glares to be sent his way.

They all sat in silence for a moment before they were able to shake off Shigure's words as caring instead of perverted.

Yuki gently squeezed Tohru's hand reassuringly while Kyou just nodded. "We all want you to get well fast Tohru," Yuki said, while the rice ball blushed from hearing her name roll off his tongue "so if you need anything, anything at all, don't hesitate to ask."

"Yeah, I could cook and stuff, if you wanted, just 'til you get better and all." Kyou said, trying to make his input.

"That settles it then!" Shigure said, clapping his hands together "From now until this time next week, you are under house arrest!" he finished, pointing a finger dramatically at Tohru.

"Lighten up, Shi-san" Hatori mumbled "She should be able to leave the house; the fresh air will do her good." he slapped Shigure's hand down from its pointing position "But you're not to go out 

alone, do you understand? I don't want you going anywhere without Shigure, Yuki, Kyou, myself or any other Sohma you're friends with."

Tohru nodded quickly and felt her hand being squeezed again by Yuki.

"It's just a precaution, if you were to collapse while on a walk by yourself, we would not be able to find you very quickly, but if someone were with you, they could go and get help of carry you back themselves."

Tohru nodded again, understanding fully what he meant. Tohru had told Hatori about the fan club girls beating her up and an outraged Hatori was now going to all lengths to make sure she was protected.

"And if you're going to walk with Kisa, make sure that Haru or Yuki is with you, okay?"

"Oi! What about me?" the cat demanded, resenting being left out.

"You'll scare Kisa off with that loud mouth of yours, neko." The rat automatically shot at his cousin.

The two began bickering as Hatori sighed and looked from his cousins to Tohru. "Do you understand my instructions, Tohru?"

Tohru nodded a third time and Hatori stood up to leave.

"Ha-san! Going so soon?" Shigure whined.

"If I don't get back to Akito soon, he'll be wondering where I am. Somehow I don't think you'd appreciate him coming to visit you in such a situation as this."

"Good point..." Shigure gave up.

"Ja ne!" Hatori said with a wave and disappeared out the door with his briefcase in hand.

Yuki still had hold of Tohru's hand under the table. He was quite shocked with himself that he could make such a bold movement, given the situation. He ignored the cat's attempts at provocation and glanced down, smiling inwardly, grateful that Tohru was returning the same pressure to his hand that he was giving to her.

"Tohru-chan! Did you clean up this morning while we were all asleep?" Shigure asked, trying his best to act cute.

Yuki rolled his eyes and Kyou, needing someone to direct his anger at, glared daggers at the older male. Tohru nodded her head a few times and began explaining her reasons.

"I feel so terrible about everything! Here I am acting selfish while you're all doing so much for me! I know cleaning up isn't enough for you to forgive my actions! I beg your forgiveness! How can I ever make this up to you?"

Under the table, Tohru could feel Yuki stroking her hand with his thumb and she relaxed a tiny bit.

"Tohru-chan! Don't worry, don't worry. At the moment I want you to just take a break from everything! That means NO big house chores." Shigure said, turning to point at her again. "Just do things that you know you can do without over working yourself."

"And if you do too much Tohru..." Kyou began, "I'll lock you in your room and forbid you to ever go to school or work again!" He finished with a smirk.

Tohru's eyes once again grew very wide and her jaw dropped open a little. "But..." she began, trying to find a loophole, but finding none. She dropped her head and whispered "Hai."

* * *

The rest of the day ran rather smoothly after that, apart from when Tohru decided to hang out the washing and Kyou wouldn't let her. The two stood bickering in the laundry for ten minutes, before Yuki came in, took the basket and walked outside with it.

The two of them stood blinking dumbly after him for a few moments, until Tohru ran out after Yuki.

"Ah, Yuki-kun! You don't have to do that!" Tohru protested, twisting the hem of her shirt nervously.

Yuki turned his attention away from the shirt he was hanging up and smiled at her. A light breeze surrounded the two as Tohru smiled back.

"Would you like to help me, Tohru?"

A blush crept into her cheeks as she heard her name roll sweetly off his tongue. He said her name as if he were referring to something sacred... and it sounded beautiful to her ears.

Tohru nodded enthusiastically and joined Yuki by the line. The two silently hung out the damp clothing, listening to the singing of the birds and the rustling of the leaves in the trees as the soft wind blew.

* * *

Shigure sighed as he watched the two through the window as they worked together. He picked up the phone next to him and lazily dialled his friend's number.

"Moshi moshi?" An exuberant voice asked.

"Ayame, my love..." Shigure began, twirling the phone cord around his index finger.

"Shigure, I was just thinking about you..."

The two males began giggling down the phone at their inside joke.

"Aya, how have you been?" Shigure asked, having finally composed himself.

"Oh I've been very busy with the store lately, Shi. How is my darling brother Yuki?"

"Actually, I was hoping that you could take tomorrow off to come and visit so we could talk about him..."

There was silence on Ayame's and of the phone for a moment.

"Absolutely! I would love to come over! It's been a while since we've been able to play together, Shigure..." Ayame replied, slipping back into his previous state.

"I'll be waiting impatiently for you, Aya." Shigure said in the same way.

"Will you two just go get a room?" Kyou asked, annoyed.

"So you approve?" Shigure asked him, his eyes brightening up "Aya! Kyou approves of our relationship!" he shouted excitedly down the phone.

"He does!?"

Kyou could practically hear Ayame jumping up and down.

"Oh Kyoukichi! I had no idea!" the snake shouted down the phone.

"DON'T CALL ME KYOUKICHI!" the angered cat yelled before stomping up the stairs to his room.

"So Aya," Shigure began, continuing the conversation as if Kyou's outburst never occurred, "can you come here around lunch time? Tohru will be making a wonderful meal for us."

"I shall be there!" He hung up.

* * *

Yuki and Tohru had finished hanging the washing to dry. Tohru turned around to head back inside, when Yuki's hand caught her own and turned her back.

"Tohru..." he began, fighting off a blush "Will you come for a walk with me? To the vegetable patch... I-It's okay if you don't feel up to it..."

Tohru re-adjusted her hand in Yuki's to get a better grip and took a step towards him, "Hai, I would love to. I'm allowed to walk with you, remember?" she laughed.

Yuki smiled warmly and tilted his head slightly to one side, allowing his silky hair to fall slightly in front of his eyes, "Of course." He said and the two of them began walking together to the secret base.

* * *

Kyou sat down at his desk and pulled a sheet of paper towards him.

He had been working on this last night, ever since he had left the table and abandoned his dinner. He read over it twice, making sure that the first stage of his plan all made sense. _'Yes,' _he thought to himself, _'this will work, this WILL work.'_

He picked up his pen and scratched a few more words into the paper before folding the sheet in two and tucking it safely in the bottom draw.

* * *

Meanwhile, Yuki and Tohru were making their way towards the secret base, hand in hand, both smiling as if they didn't have a care in the world.

When they reached their destination they both got to work on their regular duties. Pulling out the weeds, trimming the dead leaves and stirring up the soil before the next time it rained.

Tohru moved to brush some loose strands of hair behind her ear and ended up dirtying her face in the process. Yuki look up at her trying to clean the dirt off her face and chuckled lightly.

"Tohru, there's a stream near here. We could go clean up when we're finished if you'd like."

Tohru shifted her eyes to Yuki's and blushed slightly, _'He must think you're an idiot with the way you're behaving, Tohru.'_ She scolded herself and lowered her hands. "Hai, I'd like that very much." She replied, trying her best to smile for the boy that was never too busy for her.

Yuki looked away and continued to stir the dirt with his muddied hands. Tohru liked seeing him like this. He was so much more natural here than he was at home or in school. She was glad that he could be this comfortable around her. He looked up at her again and Tohru quickly averted her eyes, ashamed that she had been caught staring.

"Oh, I almost forgot!" Yuki exclaimed, causing Tohru to jump slightly and turn her eyes once more in his direction. "I'm going into town tomorrow after school to buy some new seeds. Are there any you would like?"

"Umm..." Tohru began, placing a dirty finger to her cheek and cocking her head to one side, "It might be nice to have some tomatoes in the garden..."

"Hmm, you're right." said Yuki, standing up. "Shall we get going?" He asked, offering his hand to Tohru.

Tohru placed her hand in his and allowed herself to be pulled to her feet, "Hai."

They walked for only a few minutes before they came across the stream that Yuki mentioned. It was quite narrow, just over a meter wide and about two feet deep. They knelt down at the rocks and dipped their hands in the steadily running stream. The water felt cool and refreshing on Tohru's worked hands. She rubbed them together slowly, gently loosening the dirt away from her skin.

Yuki had finished washing his hands already and was patting them dry on his trousers. He sat back and silently watched Tohru as she lightly cleaned the dirt off her face. When she was done, she wiped her face dry on the backs of her sleeves and smiled towards Yuki.

"Shall we get going, Yuki-kun?" She asked him, rising to her feet.

"Tohru," Yuki began, "You can drop the honorific from my name you know... O-only if you feel comfortable that is."

"Ah! A-ano... Y-Yuki?"

"Ah."

"Shall we get going then?" She asked once again, trying her best to stop the blush that was threatening to cover her entire face.

"Un, sure." He replied, finally standing up.

"We should come here again." He said suddenly.

"Nani-"

"For a picnic or something." He continued, shoving his hands in his pockets, "You seem to like this spot."

Tohru smiled inwardly, that was just like Yuki.

"Or better yet," Yuki added, removing his left hand from his pocket to take Tohru's right, "how about I show you an even better pace next time?"

"Sure. I'd really like that."

* * *

AN: Okay so I know that Yuki and Kyou aren't really fighting again properly yet... but I can't just launch right into a battle scene can I?

I decided that Shigure needed to behave a little more like himself, so I added in that phone conversation with Ayame to give him the chance to act like the perverted author that he is. - I just hope he doesn't get his hands on my fan fictions!!

-X-Nefertiri-X-


	8. Ayame's Idea

AN: Dear readers. It has been over two months since I last updated and I cannot say how deeply sorry I am for leaving you all waiting like this. With school suddenly becoming more hectic and with myself becoming ill with glandular fever and a secondary infection, there was not much I could do with this story. I will admit that I felt like giving up on this story a little while ago, as I had a bit of a writer's block of all things. But I managed to finish this chapter and can ask nothing more of you than to read it, review it and remain patient with me as i struggle through my last few weeks of school and exams.

* * *

Chapter Eight - Ayame's Idea

"Ohaiyo, Ayame-san!" Tohru greeted the older man as he stepped across the threshold of Shigure's house.

"Ohaiyo, Tohru-chan!" he replied, sweeping his long silky hair off his shoulder with one hand so that it fell perfectly into place against his back.

"Did you come here to see Yuki?" Tohru asked, "Because I'm sorry to say that he's already left with Kyou for school..."

The overconfident snake raised his eyebrows at Shigure who was leaning against a wall just behind Tohru.

"Yuki? No more calling my dear younger brother Sohma-san or even Yuki-kun?" Ayame asked, leaning in closely to Tohru to examine her response more properly.

"Ah, a-ano..."

"She's been calling him that most of the weekend."

The young girl jumped and spun around at the sound of Shigure's voice.

"It's my understanding that he asked her to drop the honorific... as did Kyou for that matter."

"Kyoukichi did? Really?" Ayame stared at his best friend in disbelief, "My, my... that was uncharacteristic of him! What an interesting new development we have here..." he finished, stroking an imaginary beard on his chin.

Tohru waved her hands in front of her face, "N-no it's n-nothing like that at all!"

"Oh?" Ayame challenged, leaning closer to Tohru still.

"That's...It's..."

"Aya, stop teasing my pretty flower," Shigure protested, slipping in next to Tohru and placing an arm around her bony shoulders, "it's not very nice."

"Ah gomen, gomen, Tohru-chan. I was just having some fun."

"It's alright Ayame-san," Tohru smiled one of the brightest smiles she could muster, "would you like some breakfast?"

The visitor's jaw dropped and his eyes widened slightly. He instantly grabbed both of Tohru's hands in his own and pulled her towards him, forcing her to take a step away from Shigure's arm about her shoulders.

"You mean to say..." Ayame began carefully, "That you actually have food left over from breakfast!?" he asked, astonished.

Tohru answered his question with a simple yet unsure "Hai."

"How is this possible!?"

He looked to Shigure and pointed an accusing finger at him, "YOU! How could you not eat all of my dear Tohru's precious food that she prepared with her heart and soul? It's a monstrosity! It's not to be heard of! My dear Tohru..." Ayame turned his attention back to her now and held her hands in both of his once more, "I shall finish what these offensive housemates are too insensitive to consume, on your behalf."

"Ayame-san, really. My cooking isn't that spe-"

"Don't be ridiculous Tohru-chan!" Ayame said before skipping off into the kitchen to get himself some breakfast.

"Don't worry Tohru-kun. Once Aya has made up his mind about something, it's hand to change it."

Tohru simply nodded in agreement with Shigure.

"Oh and Tohru..." he scratched the back of his head, wondering how to put his thoughts into a coherent string of words, "We didn't offend you by not finishing your meal this morning did we?"

Tohru burst out laughing as soon as he asked his question. When she saw his taken back expression she quickly sapped a hand over her mouth and bowed deeply.

"Gomen, Shigure-san. No, you did not offend me in any way. I am fully aware that it is only breakfast, you could never offend me when you've allowed me to live with you." She tipped her head to the side and continued, "Besides, left-over's are always handy aren't they?"

"That's true, Tohru-kun. Thank you for all your hard work." Shigure bowed slightly to her which caused her to bow even lower.

"Enough of that," Shigure placed a hand on each of her shoulders and straightened her up; "shall we go and see what Aya is doing before he destroys the kitchen?"

The rice ball lightly giggled and nodded once more, before following Shigure through the doorway to the kitchen.

"Ahh! Ayame-san no! Let me do it, please!" Tohru half shouted, running over to Ayame who was about to put a foil-covered tub into the microwave.

She reached out and managed to extricate the object from his hands. Relieved, she sighed and took the foil off. _'That could have been a disaster...'_ she thought as she threw the foil into the bin and proceeded to heat up breakfast for their guest.

"Would you like some tea?" Tohru asked the two older men who were sitting and chatting merrily at the table.

"Most definitely, Tohru-kun!" Shigure replied eagerly, nodding at the same time, "Won't you make yourself some too and join us?"

"Yes Tohru-chan! You must join us and tell us what my dear brother Yuki has been doing in my absence!!"

"Hai," Tohru said, bowing slightly to them as the microwave went off.

"Why thank you my dear." Was the response that Tohru received from the two men as she set the tea down at the table along with Ayame's breakfast.

"It was no trouble at all, really..." Was all the young girl could reply before two hands simultaneously raised up to silence her words.

"Tohru-kun, please. You do so much around here, at least let me thank you properly." Ayame explained before thanking Tohru once again for the meal and the tea before digging in.

"Always as polite as ever, Aya." Shigure sighed, taking a sip of his tea "Never one to make a girl feel unwanted or unappreciated."

"And she ought not to!" the snake protested, outraged. "My dear sweet Tohru-kun is but a rose amongst a bunch of mere daisy's... the plum on a rice ball..."

Shigure had a bad feeling about this. Not that what his cousin was saying was bad, no. But Ayame had an unexplainable habit of rambling on about any particular subject, unless interrupted before that could occur.

"Umm, Aya?"

"...The rays of light that shine through the darkest clouds..."

"Aya?"

"...A diamond in the rough..."

Shigure looked to Tohru for help by showing the biggest pair of puppy-dog eyes that he could muster. Tohru, being the kind-hearted young girl that she is, saw Shigure's helplessness immediately and decided to step in for assistance.

"Ano, Ayame-san?"

"What is it my dear sweet Tohru-kun?" Ayame asked, instantly ceasing his incoherent thought process and switching his attention to the girl in front of him.

"Gee Aya, you'll listen to her and not me?" Shigure pouted and clutched his chest with a grimace on his face, pausing for a dramatic effect, "You break my heart."

"Nonsense Shigure!" the long –haired man chided before draining the last dregs of his tea and licking his lips approvingly.

"Tohru-kun!" he suddenly exclaimed, as a large light bulb went off above his head.

Tohru jumped in fright at unexpectedly being addressed "H-hai, Ayame-san?"

"I have just had the most wonderful idea!" he sang loudly, placing his hand on his chest and throwing the other out to the side in a dramatic stance. It would not be unreasonable to say, that Shigure got his drama-loving side from the snake.

"Tohru-kun and I shall run away together!"

"Na-na-na-nani?"

"Tohru-kun..." Ayame began as he took both of the rice ball's hands in his own and drew his face close to hers, causing her to blush. "Will you run away with me? We shall go where no-one shall find us."

Tohru, with her cheeks flushed as red as a tomato, slowly nodded in her acceptance. After all that had happened in her life recently, she finally felt like she could use a break.

"Then pack quickly my precious flower, for we leave before noon!"

* * *

"Tadaima!" called two high school boys as they stepped through the door to their house.

Over the past few months, Shigure's house became more of a home to them than any place they had been before. They both knew they had a certain rice ball to thank for that.

Yuki had become more open with his feelings and easier to interact with. His whole life, the rat had been an outcast, not only in the Sohma family but in school as well. While others still admired him from afar and expressed their love for him occasionally, Yuki only ever wanted a friend. Someone to stroll with on a fine day, to play games with, to talk to when things started getting a little out of control. For him, Tohru had become that much needed friend.

The youth made his way through the kitchen into the living area, expecting to find Tohru in there, watching television hopefully and perhaps folding washing, but he found no trace of her. He cocked his head to the side and took a moment to wonder where she might be. In her room perhaps? She did need to get a lot of rest after all, maybe she was asleep? If that was the case then he wouldn't disturb her.

Yuki made his way back into the kitchen to fetch himself a glass of water. Upon entering he found his cousin sticking his head into the fridge, no doubt snooping around for milk.

"Yo rat," Kyou addressed him rudely. Yuki didn't even flinch at the hostility reverberating in his cousin's voice; he turned from the sink to retort in his usual calm manner.

"What does the little kitty want this time?"

"LITTLE KITTY!?"

Kyou blew up immediately, striking out at Yuki. He aimed a kick at the violet haired teen's chest which he dodged expertly and sauntered backwards. Shigure was bound to cry endlessly if another shoji screen was damaged, so Yuki drew his opponent outside into the backyard, the perfect sparring location.

Yuki took up his fighting stance and Kyou could only look upon him with jealousy. His stance was flawless, every place Kyou looked for an opening was covered, not even an ambush from behind in pitch black could prove successful against the rat while he was in that stance. This served to anger Kyou even more.

He lashed out without warning, aiming a fist into his opponent's face which was dodged with ease. Scowling, the cat feinted to the left and kicked out with his right leg, hoping to catch the prince off guard. His efforts were futile. In an instant, Yuki had dropped to the ground and knocked Kyou clean off his feet with one sweeping motion of his leg and was on his feet again after a quick back handspring.

"Daijoubu, baka neko? You're a little slow today..."

Kyou sprung off the ground and immediately moved to attack again. An unwise decision, as Yuki had already taken it upon himself to attack and struck the orange haired teen in the chest with a powerful punch that made him stumble backwards. Seeing the perfect opening, Yuki ran up to his cousin in a few short strides and kicked him in the chest, back flipped and landed faultlessly on his feet. Kyou was sent flying back several metres to come to a skidding halt on his side.

Yuki smirked victoriously and turned to stroll back into the house, he stopped momentarily, thinking about throwing some witty comment at his cousin, but thought better of it and decided to find Tohru and apologise for the ruckus they were making.

Kyou lay there on the ground, waiting until Yuki had left before stirring. The damn rat knew his every move, knew his every weakness and that just pissed him off even more. What stung his pride though, was that he knew his stupid cousin was right. He was slow, but why? Something was off, but he couldn't quite pin point what it was.

The cat sighed and laced his hands behind his head. He hadn't fought with the rat in ages, he mused. Tohru was always around to stop the two of them tearing each other's head's off, always there to calm the storm and with recent developments... he sucked in a deep breath and let it out in a sigh, he hadn't been able to release all his pent up anger. But why had he been able to release it today? If you could call that releasing...

"Tohru..."

He hadn't seen the girl since breakfast that morning; perhaps her absence had taken its toll on him. Although he complained about her goofy smile on a regular basis, he still enjoyed seeing it none the less.

Kyou rolled himself to his feet and made a start back into the house. He wanted to see her and tell her about school that day... and find some milk while he was at it.

* * *

"Hatori! Nice of you to pick up the phone for your old dear friend!" Shigure whined down the receiver to the dragon on the other end, clearly miffed that it had taken him three attempts to get Hatori on the phone.

"I'm busy at the moment Shigure, if this could wait for another time..."

"Oh but it can't wait Ha-san!" the perverted man sang, twirling the phone cord around his index finger.

He could hear Hatori's silence asking him to continue.

"Our dead Tohru-chan won't be available for check-ups any time soon, no. She's gone on a little holiday with Aya."

Hatori almost choked on the cigarette he was having at that moment and glared at the phone in his hand. "You mean to tell me that she's with Ayame? Do you know where? Shigure this is most irresponsible of you-"

"They've just gone to Tetsumi's for a few days, that's all."

"I'm not sure I like this idea."

"It's fine Ha-san. Everything's fine! Ah, I hear the boys are home. Ja ne!"

Hatori replaced the receiver and held his forehead in his hand while taking long drags from an almost finished cigarette. Yuki and Kyou were going to kill Shigure.

* * *

AN: I beg you to be patient with me, as you have been so far (then again maybe not). I shall try hard to get the next chapter underway soon while I still have a week of holidays left. But I can only do so much...

-X-Nefertiri-X-


	9. In the Thick of It All

AN: This chapter will be featuring a character from Hayate no Gotoku (Hayate the Combat Butler as the title is in English). This character just seemed to fit in well with where the story was going. If you don't know the character then that's alright, I won't be using any information from the anime other than the character's name, age and personality.

* * *

Chapter Nine - In the Thick of It All

"_Okaa-san? Where are you?" Tohru yelled as she wandered the streets looking for her mother._

"_Tohru, I'm right behind you!" Kyoko laughed and ruffled her daughter's hair with a loving smile. "You're so cute!" she cooed and swept her daughter into a big hug._

_Tohru savoured the warmth she found in her mother's arms. "I missed you Okaa-san, I didn't know where you were! I was so worried!" Tohru buried her face deeper into the crook of Kyoko's neck and breathed in the sweet scent of her soap._

_She didn't know when it had started, but the next thing she knew, she was crying lightly._

"_Hush, Tohru. It's okay." Kyoko smiled and released her daughter, only to hold her by the shoulders and look deep into her eyes. "Just remember that I'll always love you..." she placed an adoring kiss on her forehead, "...and I'll always be with you, no-matter how far or how long life takes me away, I will always be thinking of you."_

_The rice ball wiped her eyes on the backs of her sleeves before throwing her arms around her mother's neck. "I love you, Okaa-san."_

"_I love you too, my dear sweet Tohru."_

_At length, Kyoko left the embrace of her daughter and started walking away, beckoning the confused girl to follow._

"_Okaa-san? Where are we going?"_

"_We're here." She said simply, pointing to a building Tohru vaguely recognised._

"_But what are we doing here?"_

"_Tohru, we're here."_

"_Hai, you said that."_

"_Tohru... Tohru can you hear me?" Kyoko had gently grasped her child's shoulder and was now shaking her softly._

_Tohru looked at her mother blankly._

"Tohru... Tohru-chan! Wake up, we're here." A soft voice cooed out to the sleeping girl in the car.

"Na-nani?" The girl in question slowly came to consciousness and stretched widely, hitting her hands on the car roof.

Suddenly everything came flooding back to her. Ayame's proposal of a holiday, her orders to pack, their abrupt departure in a chauffeur driven car... Her eyes snapped open and she turned her head sharply in the direction of the man sitting next to her.

"A-Ayame-san! Gomenasai! I-I fell asleep on you..." She blushed, put out that she had done something so rude to of a good friend.

"Oh Tohru-chan it's nothing!" The always alert snake sang, stepping out of the car, "Now that you're awake, we can have lots of fun together!"

The still drowsy girl allowed herself to be helped out of the car by the man's soft hand and straightened herself up before looking at the wondrous landscape that surrounded her.

"Oh, Ayame-san! It looks even better than the picture!" she sighed, clasping her hands together in delight.

Shortly, a maid came out of the building in front of them and bowed deeply, first to Ayame, then to Tohru. The young girl's cheeks tinged with pink at the show of kindness and she quickly sunk into a bow even deeper than the one the maid was offering, this caused the snake beside her to giggle.

The maid straightened up and looked Ayame in the eye. "Now, now Ayame-sama, we'll have none of that. I won't have you giggling away at dear Honda-chan while she's here."

She smiled somewhat sadistically and the sternness in her sweet voice caused the man to snap to attention, his eyes glued on a spot somewhere over the maids left shoulder.

"That's better," she sighed, moving forward to place her right hand on Ayame's shoulder, "it was you, after all, who called here and asked that Honda Tohru-chan be treated with the utmost respect..."

Ayame, still at attention nodded his head once.

"...like a princess..."

Nod, nod.

"...that I ought not to have her help me in any way even under pain of death..."

Nod, nod, nod.

She turned to Tohru "...Gomenasai Honda-chan, but I'm not willing to die young." She winked at the rice ball and Tohru felt herself relax even more and produced a calm smile.

"Nonsense Maria-san! You're about as old as I am..."

The maid in question clutched her apron in tight fists, "I'm only seventeen, thank you." She said through gritted teeth.

Ayame took a step back and Maria's features returned to their previous, gentle state. "Now Honda-chan, if you and this... man, would follow me please, I would be glad to take you to your room." She said to Tohru with a slight bow.

The two in question picked up their belongings and followed the young maid into the building as the car drove off behind them.

"Ano, Ayame-san..." Tohru began, as they followed Maria through the traditional looking hallways of the building, "how long are we staying here for?"

"Just a few days, Tohru-chan!

"And wh-what are we going to do here, exactly?"

"Tohru-chan you know what we're doing here!" the flamboyant snake laughed with an all knowing smile, "We're going to be making sure you relax. You may partake in anything you wish. A massage, yoga, a session in the gym, origami classes... you name it!"

Tohru inclined her head to her companion, "Arigatou, Ayame-san. This means more to me than you'll ever know."

* * *

Shigure had placed the phone back on the receiver after his brief chat with Hatori and was twiddling his thumbs nervously as he waited for his cousins to discover what was different about the house.

"SHIGURE!!!"

Ah, there it was.

The novelist prepared his most innocent look and raised his arms in front of him as a form of protection, just as Yuki threw open the shoji screen, eyes ablaze with anger.

"Ah, Yuki! You're home! Welcome back..."

"Where is she?"

"Where is, who?" Shigure questioned, choosing the wrong time to play the fool.

Yuki's already dark eyes grew, if possible, even more dark as he bore down upon his cousin. "Don't play games with me, Shigure." He said slowly and firmly, "You _know_ that Tohru is meant to be at home resting. I have looked everywhere for her, called for her and she has not answered me. I'm going to ask you one more time. Where... Is... Tohru?"

Behind Yuki, Kyou stood, one hand gripping the doorframe, face drained of some of its colour. "Tohru's, not here?" So that's why he and Yuki fought like they did today. Without Tohru around, they were able to slug it out... or in Kyou's case, _attempt_ to slug it out in the backyard for the first time in, well, a while.

Shigure had tried to squirm away from Yuki's gaze, but he found it nearly impossible to move while pierced with such a fierce stare. He was almost petrified to the spot.

Kyou came further into the room and stood resolutely next to his cousin. "Where is she, Shigure?" He demanded, folding his arms tightly over his chest, glaring menacingly at the older male.

"Boys, boys!" Shigure waved his hands in front of his face in some form of self defence. "It wasn't my idea! It was all his! I swear it!"

Yuki and Kyou glanced at each other briefly and shared a curt nod before drawing back their fists, ready to beat the hell out of their landlord.

"AHH! No! Don't hurt me! Tohru-kun will be most displeased with you if you do!"

"We won't know that," Yuki began through gritted teeth, "until we find her."

"Ah, yes. Right you are. Well you see. She's gone on a short getaway with... your hrrmmmphmm." Shigure mumbled, not really wanting to reveal the identity of Tohru's companion.

"What was that, Shigure?"

"Yes, do speak more clearly."

The older male sighed and said a quick prayer before answering the boys.

"She's gone to Tetsumi's with your brother, Yuki."

...

"WHAT!?!?"

"OH I'M GONNA KILL THAT-"

* * *

"I hope the room is to your liking, Honda-chan." Maria said with a bow to the young girl.

"Ah, Hai! Arigatou Maria-san." The girl replied with a bow of her own.

"Dinner is served at seven each evening, so it would be prudent to be in the dining hall at that time." The maid said, moving over to the shoji doors on the far side of the room and opening them wide. "The hot springs are open until eleven, which is convenient if you like the peace and quiet. There is also a complimentary Thai-chi class for you and Ayame-sama at nine tomorrow morning. Breakfast will be available from seven until ten thirty."

Tohru nodded, trying to remember all of this information so she could recall upon it later.

"If you have any questions or require my assistance at any time, please do not hesitate to call for me. Just pick up the phone and dial 131."

"Arigatou, Maria-san!" Tohru bowed once more to the maid who smiled in return.

Maria winked at the rice ball and made her way out of the room, leaving the girl with the high-spirited snake.

* * *

"Yuki-kun, calm down, ne?" The zodiac dog tried to reason with his younger cousin, "It won't do you any good getting all rattled up like this."

"HOW COULD YOU LET HER GO WITH HIM?" Yuki roared, letting his anger get the better of him. He lunged forward and grabbed a fistful of Shigure's haori, dragging the man close to him until the older was merely inches away from his face.

To say that Shigure was scared would be an understatement. He was petrified. Fear had gripped the writer like the cold hand of death. He had seen what Yuki was capable of. Hell, the almost destruction of his house every-so-often was proof of that.

Shigure stared into the violet eyes of the boy before him, too frozen to blink or look away.

"Knock it off, would' ya rat? He's likely to wet himself soon." Kyou's voice broke in, breaking the boy from his seething rage.

Yuki slowly released his grip and took a step back. "Does Hatori know about this? He's her doctor after all... If he doesn't approve then-"

"Oh Hatori knows alright." The oldest of the three said, finally finding his voice. "As for his approval... well that may be an entirely different matter."

"So you let her go anyway!?" Kyou snapped, folding his arms a little tighter.

"Now, now Kyou, Yuki. Aya may not seem like the best person in the world-"

"You've got that right." Yuki mumbled.

"_But, _he does know how to take care of a damsel in distress and you boys know, you _know_ what Tohru has been going through lately. I think we give Aya a chance on this one."

The two teens started at the author incredulously.

"Are you SERIOUS?" They yelled in unison, jaws dropping open like fly traps.

"For once, yes I am." He admitted, leaning back in his chair.

Kyou raised an eyebrow at the zodiac dog while Yuki, copying his cousin's stance, folded his arms tightly over his chest.

"Just give it until tomorrow. Then I promise you, you can charge in there like knights in shining armour and rescue the precious flower... hmm, that may be a good prompt for a new story..."

Yuki lowered his hands to his sides, staring at the man in front of him for a moment, before stalking out of the room. Kyou stood still for a moment longer before following suit.

* * *

Tohru stepped into the hot spring with a sigh. The temperature was perfect. She waded deeper until she reached the middle and ducked beneath the surface, allowing the warm water to wash over her and sink into her skin.

The rice ball resurfaced with a refreshing gasp for air, and then settled against the smooth rocks behind her.

"May I join you, Tohru-chan?"

Tohru whipped her head in the direction of the voice, smiling when she realised who it was.

"Maria-san! It would be my pleasure."

The two girls sat in silence for a short while before Maria turned to Tohru.

"Ayame-sama is worried about you, you know." She began, running her hands over the water's smooth surface. "He said that you had been involved in some trouble lately."

"Oh... well I, I suppose that's true..." the girl admitted, her thoughts flashing back to the times those Prince Yuki Fan-club girls had cornered her.

"Why don't you tell me what's on your mind?"

Tohru bowed her head and stared intently at her legs beneath the water. How could she do it? Tell a complete stranger all her problems when she couldn't even tell the Sohma's everything... the idea seemed absurd, and yet, not so absurd. She felt comfortable around the young maid who was about a year older than herself.

While the rice ball sat there, Maria had slid closer and was now seated next to her.

"Tohru-chan?"

Maria had placed a comforting hand on the girl's shoulder and felt her shake slightly.

"If I wasn't living with the Sohma's then none of this would've ever happened..." Tohru began, bringing her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms about them.

The maid sighed and placed a hand on the top of Tohru's head before running it down the length of her hair and repeating the motion.

"A few months ago," Tohru began, "these girls, who believe that they and only they deserve to be near Yuki, started asking me all kinds of questions about him. They had somehow found out that I had been living with him and Kyou and, well... they didn't like it. They never confronted me at school, but they did get me while I was heading to work."

The girl stiffened at the memory and Maria continued her soothing motions, brushing the knots out of the girl's hair with her fingertips.

"It's okay, Tohru-chan. Take your time."

"They'd drag me by the h-hair into alleyways. I couldn't g-get away they, they always stopped me... 'What makes you so special? Why do _you_ get to live with him? You little _witch!_ Prince Yuki is way too good for the likes of you!' They'd ask me questions, insult me, beat me..."

Tohru cringed.

"Once I was an hour l-late to work because of t-them!" Tohru cried, burying her face in her hands.

Maria wrapped her arms around the younger girl and pulled her to her chest. "Why didn't you tell anyone?"

"They threatened me... Told me that they'd stop me from returning home ever again if I t-told anyone. I wouldn't put it past them either... they'd do anything if it m-meant they could have Yuki to themse-selves."

Warm droplets of water fell from Tohru's eyes and slid their way down her cheeks, dropping off at the end of her jaw.

The young maid rested her head upon the top of Tohru's and hugged the girl just a little tighter.

* * *

AN: This story will finish in two to four chapters' time. It didn't exactly go the way I thought it would when I first started writing it, but I don't think it's gone too badly. Thank you to everyone who has read this story, submitted a review, added it to a favourites list or an alerts list or added me to a favourites list or alerts list. Your support and kind, constructive words have meant a lot to me as I've been writing this story and I'd like to thank each and every one of you for that.

-X-Nefertiri-X-


	10. Rescuing the Rice Ball

AN: This chapter contains references to CH7. - There seems to be a lot of scene changes too now that I look at it. Enjoy ch10.

* * *

Chapter Ten - Rescuing the Rice Ball.

Yuki awoke feeling... resolute, so much so that he bounced out of bed. Not being a morning person at all, Yuki, one may think, could have something seriously wrong with him on this particular morning. However, on this morning of this day, that could be no father from the truth.

With a new pace to his morning, he went about his usual routines that normally took place a little later in the morning and done, half asleep.

This morning seemed different to every other morning Yuki had faced before. Being fully awake, time seemed to pass at a slower pace than it usually did and the zodiac rat found that he was down in the kitchen fifteen minutes after he had initially woken up.

Not feeling venturous or brave enough to cook something, the rat decided on some fruit and cereal for his morning meal. Kyou arrived a few minutes later, scratching his head in a cat-like manner before searching the fridge for some milk.

When the orange-haired teen turned around and saw Yuki at the table, fully awake and eating breakfast, he almost dropped the milk in surprise.

"AHH! What are you trying to do? Scare me to death!?"

"Did it work?" the other boy smirked from behind his spoon of cereal.

"Ha, very funny." Kyou said, dripping sarcasm. He knelt at the table across from his cousin, drinking his milk out of the carton and starting on some cereal himself.

"We're getting her back today." Yuki said slowly in an almost whisper.

Kyou just nodded his head in response, feeling no need to add anything to the comment. They _would_ get Tohru back today. There was _no way_ he would allow that damn snake to keep Tohru a moment longer.

"Oi, nezumi!" Kyou prodded, suddenly curious about something.

"Nani?"

"How are we going to get there?"

Yuki dropped his spoon into his bowl with a loud 'clang'.

"You don't _know how_, do you?" the cat asked after a minute's silence. He was half annoyed and half amused by his cousin that he had forgotten to think about that important detail.

The rat shook his head quickly to get himself out of his little trance and picked up his spoon again to resume eating.

"We may have to do a little transport hopping, but there's a bus that goes past Tetsumi's that leaves from Mankichi station..."

"A _bus_?" Kyou questioned incredulously, "You expect to get there by _bus_? How long would all that take?"

Yuki stirred the last remaining bits of cereal around in his bowl before answering.

"Well, the bus to Tetsumi's would take about an hour, so if we add on walking to the bus, getting the bus to the station and then the train to Mankichi station, we're looking at about a two hour plus trip... not to mention the time we'll have to wait for all these things to arrive..."

"Alright, alright."

Kyou massaged his temples in order to try and rid himself of the headache that was slowly forming from listening to his cousin for so long.

"When do we leave?"

* * *

Tohru wriggled under her warm blanket, savouring the feeling. She knew it was time for her to get up and eat breakfast, but she was so comfortable and so content, that she just laid there, wrapped perfectly in a little cocoon.

After her soak with Maria in the hot springs yesterday, Tohru honestly felt better. She could now see, although she knew it was too late, that telling ones friends about problems one may be experiencing is truly a load off ones chest. She felt lighter, not because of the weight she had lost, but because she was now sharing her problems and the people that knew about them, were each carrying a small part for her in their support.

Ayame had been quite the gentlemen, which was half surprising. His normally flamboyant actions almost ceased entirely as he and Tohru engaged in the quiet activity of reading. They read from late in the afternoon until ten to seven, at which time they strolled to the dining hall whereupon they had the most delicious dinner the rice ball had ever tasted.

Later that evening, Ayame had taken Tohru by the arm and the two had taken a stroll through the luscious flower-filled garden, often stopping to admire the different flowers up-close and taking in their different scents. For the petite girl, it seemed quite like a fairytale.

"_If only Yuki was here."_ She thought, snuggling deeper, if possible, into her cocoon of warmth.

Tohru's cheeks slowly began to redden as she thought about it. Her and Yuki, arm in arm, strolling through the gardens just as she and his brother had done.

She squirmed, feeling giddy. It seemed like forever since their walk to the vegetable patch and down to the stream. The young girl had not forgotten Yuki's promise to take her somewhere on a picnic and she looked forward to it immensely. Perhaps they could go together during the next weekend?

After sitting up and stretching, Tohru finally got up from her extremely comfortable futon and padded across her room and over to her case where she dressed for the day.

* * *

The Sohma boys got off the bus when it arrived at the station, one feeling a little sleepy, the other in a foul temper. It seemed that being forced to travel alone with his cousin had already taken its toll on Kyou.

He gritted his teeth and clenched his fists tightly, locking them to his thighs in an attempt to maintain self-control.

"Calm down, baka-neko." Yuki said from the ticket machine. He'd payed for both his and his cousins tickets and withdrew them, "I'm not too thrilled to have to travel with you either." He thrust Kyou's ticket at him, "But I will tolerate it for the time being. Remember, this is all for Tohru."

"It's not only that!" he hissed in an all too-familiar manner, "A little girl almost ran into me before! How do you expect us to get there without transforming!?"

"Be careful." The other teen put simply.

The cat snatched his ticket from his cousin's hand and marched away, eager to get away. "That damn noble rat... thinks he's top-notch..." he mumbled, finding a place to stand on the platform to wait for the train.

Yuki sighed and made after his cousin, stopping a few meters away from him so to not make matters worse in a public place. It was bad enough that they were risking revealing their secret, but to create such a scene which would probably get them thrown out of the station? He shook his head slightly. No, that would make it almost impossible for them to rescue Tohru. He had to get to her, no matter what it took. He could not allow his brother to keep her away any longer.

* * *

"Ohaiyo, Ayame-san." Tohru greeted the older male with a bow.

"Ah, Tohru-chan. O-hai-yo!" He sing-songed his greeting back. "Shall we go to breakfast?" he asked, offering his arm for the girl to take.

"Hai!" she responded with a bright smile.

Tohru took his arm and the two wandered to the dining hall.

After choosing what they would like to eat that morning, the two companions made their way to the back of the room to a small table whereupon they laid their meals and took their respective seats.

"Itadakimasu!" they chanted together before delving into their meals.

"Tohru-chan," Ayame began before taking in a mouthful of his breakfast, "What would you like to do this morning? I figure we only have an hour or two before my dear brother and Kyoukichi turn up to rescue you."

"Eh!? Y-Yuki and Kyou would do that?"

"Obviously you don't know my brother as well as you thought."

Tohru dropped her head, "No, perhaps I don't."

Sensing her discomfort, the snake decided to try and brighten the atmosphere. He placed one hand on his cheek and waved the other up and down. "Ah it was a joke Tohru-chan, a joke."

The girl smiled slightly at his words, but her thoughts still remained the same. Maybe she didn't really know him that well. Sure she had spent a considerable amount of time with him, but did she really truly _know_ him?

She was snapped out of her thoughts by Ayame's hand waving in her face.

"So what shall we do with our remaining time together Tohru-chan?" he asked, sending her a smile that reminded her even more of Yuki.

"_I wonder what he's doing right now..."_

* * *

The two boys had been travelling on the train for quite some time when it finally arrived at Mankichi station. The burst out of the train as soon as the door opened, eager, Yuki especially, to get away from the group of teenage girls that had been eyeing them off since a few stations back.

"Now I see how annoying that gets!" Kyou told his cousin as the two ran to the bus that would take them to Tetsumi's.

"I told you I didn't like it!"

"We're lucky none of them came over or we would've transformed for sure!"

The two bounded onto the bus and paid their fare. The driver pulled away from the station and they began their hour long trip to Tetsumi's.

* * *

Tohru and Ayame sat on their mats amongst the rest of the class as the yoga instructor lead them through various poses and taught them the proper way of breathing.

"It is important," said the instructor, "for you to remember this way of breathing, this posture and to not hesitate to use them when you are feeling stressed and difficulties are piling up on you."

That was extremely coincidental for Tohru, but she was glad nonetheless that she now had something else to resort to when times got tough. Better yet, _preventing_ times from becoming tough seemed the way to go.

It was then and there, that Tohru found her resolve and made a silent promise to herself that things would get much, much better.

* * *

The Sohma boys were sore and numb after their hour long bus ride up and over the hills. They stood stretching for a minute or two, trying to regain at least some feeling in their behinds.

"I am definitely not going to enjoy the trip home."

"Kyou! Yuki!"

The boys snapped their heads in the direction the voice had come from. There stood Tohru, white dress fluttering in the gentle breeze as she waved to the boys.

Both boys sighed simultaneously when they heard her giggle. It had only been a day and they already missed her so much.

"Ah, see Tohru-chan!? I was right that they'd come, ne?"

"Hai, Ayame-san!"

The mouths of the rat and cat dropped open when Ayame spoke.

"You knew we were coming?" Yuki asked his brother incredulously, "Did Shigure tell you?"

"Shigure?" the snake laughed, "No, no. It's just a brother's intuition!"

"Intuition? Are you serious!?" Kyou asked, getting quickly annoyed.

"Yes, yes!" Ayame smiled cheekily, "And I was so sure that I only booked one night. You boys are right on time!"

Kyou was seething, he had just travelled for _two hours_ with his enemy and Ayame was _smiling_ about it?

"YOU'RE SO DEAD!" he yelled lunging towards the snake who had quickly taken refuge behind Tohru.

"Ah, K-Kyou. Don't hurt Ayame-san." She pleaded, waving her hands up in front of her face in order to try and calm him down. "Le-Let's just go home, ne? We'll take the car."

The cat clenched his fists and growled, "Fine." He spat, "As long as I don't have to sit near either of these idiots."

Tohru just laughed nervously and Ayame saw fit to come out from his hiding spot. He stepped out from behind his human shield and took his phone out of his pocket to answer an incoming call.

"Moshi moshi?" he sang into the receiver, "Is that so? See you soon." He took the phone away from his ear and disconnected the call, "The car will be here in a moment."

Yuki walked up to Tohru, almost ready to throw his arms about her and give her the biggest hug he could muster, but he held off, knowing all too well what the consequences of such an act would be. Instead, he placed his hand on her shoulder.

"You look good, Tohru."

"Arigatou, it's good to see you again."

The car pulled up and Ayame put their luggage in the boot of the car.

"Tohru-chan!" a voice from behind called.

Tohru turned around to see Maria running towards her. "Maria-san!"

"Tohru-chan, I had to give you this..." she hesitated for a moment before wrapping the girl in a tight hug. "It was wonderful spending time with you, come and see me again okay?"

"I will. Thank you for everything Maria-san."

The two girls released each other and waved goodbye as the four travellers climbed inside the car. Kyou sat in the front seat so he wouldn't have to be anywhere near Yuki or Ayame, but he did turn around so he could talk to Tohru every now and then.

Yuki, angry with his brother and because he just generally hated him, asked Tohru to sit between them. She did so without hesitation, Yuki and Ayame were her friends after all.

Ten minutes into the trip, Yuki had taken Tohru's hand in his own and whispered in her ear, "Shall we go on our picnic soon?"

Tohru blushed lightly and nodded her head, "Hai."

* * *

AN: After that severe writers block, my brain spat this out. I'm sorry about the shortness. There was originally more to this chapter, but I decided to put it in the next chapter. Please tell me if there's anything you don't get or don't like about this chapter. I'm already thinking of editing it but I'd like some opinions first.

Thank You for reading.

-X-Nefertiri-X-


	11. Return of the Rice Ball

AN: I'm surprised at myself for getting this chapter out this quickly. I hope you're not disappointed in it. Please read and review, your support and comments are appreciated. For now, enjoy Chapter Eleven.

* * *

Chapter Eleven - Return of the Rice Ball

Upon their arrival home, Kyou was courteous enough to take Tohru's bag up to her room for her before he disappeared into his own room, desperate for some alone time after having to travel alone with Yuki for hours. He was even more annoyed that he ended up being stuck with both Yuki _and_ Ayame on the return trip home.

He'd kept his focus on Tohru and the road that lay before them, just so he could gain a sense of normality from the situation. It was nice to be in the girl's company again, even though it hadn't been that long since he last saw her. He had to keep turning around in his seat, just to make sure she was still there.

"It's not because I lo-love... her." He said to himself, striding over to his closet and taking out an article of clothing. "No, I don't... love her... not that way anyway."

He took off his shirt, feeling dirty from travelling so far and so long with his enemies. He replaced it with a simple black singlet and sat down at his desk.

He raised a hand and rubbed the back of his neck, trying to remove the ache he was feeling from travelling for so long.

"She's a..." he almost couldn't bring himself to say it, "friend." He slumped in his seat. "My _best_ friend... The closest friend I'll ever have. I _can't_ let other feelings take over and ruin what we have. No way!"

The cat got up from his seat and paced about his bedroom. "Enough of this. No matter _how_ I feel about her, I _have_ to protect her."

That, it seemed, was his final decision. Kyou bent on one knee and opened a draw from his desk, pulling out a piece of paper he had almost forgotten about. "Could this still work?"

* * *

"Tohru-kun! You're home!" Shigure squealed in delight and ran forward to Tohru, ready to embrace her in a tight hug. Instead, he was met with Yuki's outstretched arm.

The dog collided with it and fell back-first onto the floor, hard.

"What do you think you're doing?" the teen asked flatly.

Shigure groaned and tried to sit up. "I was just giving Tohru-kun a welcome home hug!"

"Baka hentai." The rat grumbled, "Do you want to transform or something?"

"She doesn't mind, do you Tohru-kun?"

Upon being addressed, Tohru shook her head quickly with her hands clasped firmly in front of her, "Iie, Shigure-san."

"See!? See!? My pretty flower loves me!"

"In your dreams."

"Yuki my dear brother!" Ayame sang from the space he was occupying by the door, "Shall we take a moment to-"

"Go home." Yuki growled.

Ayame slumped to the floor dramatically, his long hair hanging in front of his eyes.

Shigure crawled over to his fallen comrade and placed a hand on his back, rubbing it gently in a soothing motion. "He's just a little angry today Aya." He whispered, "You did steal Tohru-kun from him after all."

The teen in question just rolled his eyes and looked to the girl beside him who was biting her bottom lip, wanting to comfort the two older men on the floor just feet away.

"We should make some lunch, don't you think?"

"Ah, sure!" Tohru brightened up at the thought, "What would you like?"

"Anything," was his answer as he took her hand to lead her into the kitchen. "I've missed your cooking."

Tohru blushed and placed her other hand on her cheek to cool her heated face. Yuki was good at complimenting her at just the right moments. When she was feeling a little down or insecure, whether it was a good day or a bad day, the zodiac rat always knew the right thing to say. Sadly though, it didn't cure her all the time.

When she had walked through the door upon returning home, she'd felt guilty. Guilty that Ayame had spent so much money for her, guilty that Kyou and Yuki had spent all that time travelling together to come and get her, guilty that she'd made them worry, guilty that she'd left them alone without any pre-cooked meals in the fridge.

She sighed as they approached the fridge. With just that sentence, Yuki had made her forget about most of her guilt. She was determined in that moment to make up for it all, no matter what.

* * *

Kyou bounded downstairs when a delicious smell met his nose. On the table lay an assortment of dishes that the cat had longed for. Rice, smoked salmon, miso soup, ramen, steamed vegetables... oh how his mouth watered at the site. He quickly sat on a cushion at the table and waited impatiently for the others to arrive.

"_They'll be here really soon."_ He mused. And he was right, for who would want such an appetizing meal to go cold?

They ate with the normal chatter of the household. Ayame had gone home, much to Kyou and Yuki's joy. They felt like a family again, it was as if all the drama of the past week had never happened.

Tohru smiled in content. She had missed this feeling, this feeling of being loved and accepted for who she was. It was almost enough to overwhelm her, but she wouldn't allow that.

The afternoon passed with Kyou lounging on the roof and soaking up the sun. Being the cat in the zodiac, he couldn't help but like high places where he could stretch out. The roof was his special place, they all knew that, but the teen didn't mind it when Tohru came to visit.

Shigure was working on one of his perverted novels. He would take a break, leaning back in his chair and balance a pencil between his nose and top lip, thinking up the next scene. Despite his perverse mind, the dog was actually quite a talented writer. Some of his more _suitable_ works could account for that.

Yuki decided to assist Tohru with some of the work he had brought home for her the previous day. There were tedious tasks, such as memorising English vocabulary and doing mathematical equations. The rat helped her when she needed it, insisting it was alright.

"Ano, Yuki."

"What is it, Tohru?"

A light tinge of pink came to her cheeks upon hearing her name fall sweetly from his lips. She was thankful when her bashfulness went unnoticed.

"You don't have to waste your time helping me. You have your own work to do, right?"

Yuki placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled warmly, "It's okay, Tohru. I finished my work yesterday, but this is good revision for me."

This didn't really assure her, but she carried on working anyway, glad that he was at least there to keep her company.

Everyone went to sleep that night after a full dinner that Tohru prepared, with help from Kyou and a small amount of assistance from Yuki – Kyou didn't want to eat anything burnt, so Yuki was only allowed to chop vegetables and set the table.

At about nine that evening, Tohru had received a phone call from Hatori.

"Moshi moshi?"

"Ah Honda-san, it's Hatori. I'm glad you picked up. How are you feeling?"

"Hatori-san! Hai, I feel much better, thank you."

"Your trip with Ayame was alright?"

"Hai, it was very enjoyable, Ayame-san was wonderful, and he helped me get away for a day. I don't know how I'll ever repay him."

"I'm sure just knowing you're thankful will suffice."

Tohru heard him take a drag from a cigarette on the other end of the line before he continued. "Now I understand that you're feeling better and probably have a strong desire to go back to school..."

"So I can go back tomorrow?" the girl asked hopefully.

Hatori chuckled, "You certainly may not."

Tohru's face fell in disappointment.

"You may attend on Thursday for half a day and if you survive that, you may attend Friday also."

Seeing no better deal than the one Hatori had proposed, the rice ball accepted eagerly, hoping to see her friends soon.

"Hai, Hatori-san. I will do as you say."

"Good girl."

* * *

Yuki folded his hands behind his head and stared at the plain ceiling above him. He felt elated and all because of the events of that day. Tohru sitting next to him in the car, cooking lunch and dinner with her, being _alone_ with her just to do homework... All those events contained a sense of normality that the rat couldn't ignore.

"Everything's back to normal." He whispered into the darkness. "Almost."

He'd noticed at lunch and then again at dinner that Tohru's serving size hadn't exactly improved much. But he wasn't going to push her, just encourage her. After all, that's what friends did.

"_Friends..."_ Yuki thought for a while on the subject. He wanted to be so much more than friends with Tohru, but he didn't know how to go about it. He couldn't go and confess now, just as things were starting to heal. He would wait until Tohru was one hundred percent Tohru again. The laughing, smiling girl that he had come to know, come to like... the girl he had come to _love_.

* * *

(The next morning)

After a delicious breakfast prepared by Tohru, Kyou headed back to his room to ponder over than little slip of paper he had pulled out of his draw the previous night.

Kyou looked at the sheet of paper sitting innocently on his desk. His plan, which he thought had made complete sense, now, looked like a complete failure.

"_Yes, this will work, this WILL work."_ He remembered thinking to himself at the time.

"_No, this won't work, this WON'T work."_

Anger surged though him as he re-read his poor excuse of a plan. He laughed to himself and held the paper high in the air, appearing to examine it for a moment, before he unceremoniously tore it up, scrunched all the pieces together in a tight ball and finally slammed it into the trashcan beside his desk.

"_What_ was I _thinking_!?" he growled at himself, running his hands through his hair in frustration. "The best way to get back at these idiots... is... is..." a light bulb went off in his head, "is to get that dark girl and the Yankee involved! Why didn't I think of that before!?"

With a new found enthusiasm for going to school, the zodiac cat shot out of his room and off to school, for once, eager to get there _before_ class started.

* * *

Everyone in school knew; the teachers, the student body, the canteen ladies and the newly transferred students on their first day there, they all knew that Uotani Arisa was itching for a fight. Few people admired her, many thought she was crazy and many more were thoroughly scared of her. They all knew that she was not the type of person to annoy, unless they had a death wish and wanted their head bashed in with the lead pipe that Uotani, somehow managed to conceal within her school clothes and withdraw at a moment's notice.

If everyone knew about Uotani, then they most assuredly knew about her friend Hanajima Saki aka; 'Electro Girl.' Most of the student body got along quite well with the girl, and while some of them may have felt the girl had wronged them in one way or another, none of them got hostile.

The name 'Electro Girl' came with the job, it seemed, for Hanajima was notoriously known for her electric waves, capable of reading other people's waves and also for her threats of electric shocking people that tried to get to her or her friends.

When Kyou approached them, they were surprised to say the least, for the orange-haired teen only went near them when he was with Tohru. Immediately sensing something different about his usual waves, Hanajima tried to calm her seething friend who seemed ready to pounce on the boy and strangle him.

"CARROT-TOP!" she yelled, storming up to the teen in question and grabbing him by the front of his shirt. "Where's Tohru, eh!? Why isn't she here with you!? WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO HER!?!?"

The minute Uotani got angry, everyone in the halls fled for the safety of classrooms, bathrooms, tall trees... basically anywhere the Yankee wasn't and wasn't going to be for a while.

"I haven't done ANYTHING to her Yankee!" the teen yelled back in her face.

"Tohru was missing from school Monday... you, her and the prince were all missing yesterday, now you're here and they're not!"

Uotani pulled her famed lead pipe out of no-where and twirled it so Kyou could see it clearly, her right hand still gripping his shirt.

"If you tell me where she is..." the violent girl began through gritted teeth, "I _possibly_ won't beat you to a pulp with my little _friend_ here." She raised the pole to his face and tapped his nose lightly.

"Tohru's fine. She's at home resting. That damn Yuki decided to stay home with her so she's not alone."

Uotani seemed to relax a bit but her firm grip on her enemy's shirt didn't loosen up in the slightest.

"And _why_, Carrot-top, does she need _rest_?"

"You're her friend, shouldn't you know!?"

"I wasn't with her this weekend!"

Kyou sighed in defeat. "She's resting on Hatori's orders."

Uotani and Hanajima looked at each other quizzically for a moment before the dark-haired girl spoke up. "Hatori... you mean the doctor who came here at the festival?"

"Yeah that's him." Kyou confirmed, getting a little irritated from all the questioning and Uotani's closeness. He didn't like being man-handled by a _girl_.

"Now if you'd _let go of me..._" he pressed, sounding out his syllables so the girl would get the point.

The Yankee however, didn't relinquish her hold on the teen and instead, stood there glaring him down.

Instead of his usual reaction to Uotani's glare, Kyou just sighed and looked to Hanajima who had been tugging on the other girl's sleeve for the past minute. They were both shocked when he spoke softly in a tone that neither of them had ever heard before. "Can I talk with you two? It's important."

Uotani slowly released the boy in front of her in shock, her hand slid to her side and she backed off. "You're... you're serious aren't you?"

"Damn right I am!"

He dropped his voice to a whisper lest anyone overhear him speak, "It's about those fan-club girls..."

"I have been reading some peculiar waves from them as of late," Saki interjected, "they seem to be quite hostile yet I don't know the reason why."

"Those bitches." Uotani's lead pipe was still in her hand, her knuckles began turning white from the pressure she was applying to it. "You mean to say, that they've got something to do with Tohru?"

Though he would never admit it to anyone, Kyou was slightly afraid to answer. Knowing the Yankee's temperament, he knew she would fly off the handle. He took a short moment to think about how he should respond. Words? Actions? He didn't know which would save him from her wrath. The wrath of that Yankee was scary to say the least, everyone hiding in classrooms, bathrooms and trees could account for that.

In the end, Kyou settled for a curt nod to confirm her suspicions. It turned out to be a wise move.

"DAMN IT!" the blonde cursed, slamming her pipe into a nearby locker and causing a sizeable dent. "Where are they, huh!?"

"Arisa, calm down." Saki pleaded, tugging on the girl's sleeve once more, "Kyou-san's waves suggest he might have a solution to this."

The Yankee stared at the teen in question, waiting for him to answer. "Well Carrot-top? Do you?"

"Yeah," he murmured, "but the idea's not perfect." He folded his arms over his chest and leant back against the locker Uotani had attacked.

"Well? Are you going to share or not!?"

If he could have avoided it – and he certainly would have liked to – Kyou would have never beckoned the two girls closer until they were inches apart so he could whisper to them. He would have never looked either one of them in the eyes to convey his seriousness. And he would have never shook hands with them to seal their agreement.

He would never have done any of this, but it was for Tohru, so he'd bear with it.

* * *

AN: Thank you for reading. Reviews would be lovely, constructive criticism will be taken into account.

I've noticed that I like scene changing as of late, not sure why really. I guess it helps all the characters stay in the story. Also, I've finally gotten round to putting Saki and Arisa into the story properly, they're heavily involved in the Fan Club's demise, or whatever you would prefer to call it.

I do realise that Kyou is featured in most of this chapter more so than Yuki and Tohru, even though this is a YukixTohru fic. The main couple will be heavily featured in the upcoming chapters.

Thank you again for reading.

-X-Nefertiri-X-


	12. Set in Motion

AN: Thanks to everyone who reviewed my last chapter, it was wonderful seeing four reviews the very same day I posted it. The end is drawing near fast for this story, hopefully I won't have any more writer's blocks so I can finish this off and get going with the other stories I've been creating on the side :D

AHH! I just found out that I've been spelling Hanajima as Haninjima this whole time! Now I really feel like a fool. I've gone back and corrected this in the chapters that this name is featured. Please forgive my mistake.

This chapter is for **loretta537** who wanted to see the fan club girls go down as much as I did.

One more thing I've gone and corrected in ch11 is when Tohru said "Ayame-san wasn't wonderful," I changed it to the positive it was meant to be – "Ayame-san was wonderful,"

I think that's all the notes I have for you today, on with the story!

* * *

Chapter Twelve - Set in Motion

"Yuki-kun, really, if you leave now you still might make it on time for school!"

Tohru had been insisting that Yuki go to school all morning. She was feeling ever so guilty that the teen had decided to sacrifice his education for her; she didn't want him to when she was quite capable of taking care of herself, especially now that she was feeling better. Yuki however, was adamant in his decision and sat himself stubbornly at the table, drinking a glass of juice slowly in defiance of her request.

He set his half-empty glass down and chuckled, "It's Yuki."

Tohru dropped her jaw when she realised her slip-up. She had gone and added the honorific when he'd asked her not to. In a slight panic she began apologising, much to Yuki's amusement.

"Yuki, gomenasai, I didn't mean... I just forgot..."

The rat smiled, "It's alright Tohru. And don't worry about school; we can catch up together when we go back."

She smiled back and felt her heart thump a little harder than normal, he was really too nice sometimes.

Shigure had gone out for the day to attend a meeting with his editor Mitsuru. He always liked to torment the poor girl, so he purposely made sure he'd arrive late. Mitsuru had already called five times that morning, crying uncontrollably, to make sure the writer was on his way. Tohru had spent a good ten minutes trying to calm the editor down.

Shigure's absence meant that Tohru and Yuki were alone for the day, a fact that the violet-haired teen was glad for. He didn't think he could stand it if Tohru was left in the care of Shigure again, why, the last time that happened his brother had come over and taken the girl away for the night. He certainly couldn't allow an incident like that to occur again, that would mean that he would, once more, have to travel with the cat.

It's not that he hated Kyou, well maybe he did. It didn't help that they clashed each time they were in the same room, nor did it help that the zodiac rat was the one to trick the cat into thinking the party was the next day.

Yuki drank the rest of his juice in content as Tohru cleared the table of dishes. Glass still in hand he wandered into the kitchen and began helping her with the washing up.

"Ah, Yuki! You don't have to help me with-"

"I wouldn't feel right if I left you to do the dishes _alone_." He put simply as he dried a bowl the girl had just placed on the drying rack.

"O-okay." She continued with her dish-washing, passing the wet dishes straight to Yuki.

With the two of them working in harmony, the dishes were done in no time and the two teens were at a loss at what to do next. More school work? No, they'd already finished it and Tohru couldn't bear the thought of Yuki having to do yet _more_ revision on top of that which he did the previous day.

Tohru absentmindedly twiddled her thumbs. She was bored, but didn't really want to show it. Yuki's mood seemed to reflect her own as he lazily scratched away at the table with his short nails, interrupting the sharp silence of the house with the repetitive scraping.

This was strange territory for them. Normally, there would be a mountain of things to be done; activities in which they could immerse themselves to help them ease into discussion, however, with Tohru's 'housework ban' and the two teens having finished their homework, there was little they could do to occupy their time.

Timidly, the rice ball decided to break the awkward silence. "Yuki, ano... there's still time for you to-"

"I've got it!" Yuki suddenly declared, slapping the palm of his hand firmly on the table. He gave the girl next to him a warm smile, cocking his head to one side, "Why don't we go on that picnic?"

Tohru clapped her hands in delight, "That sounds wonderful!" She smiled back at the teen before she faltered, "But... we just had breakfast! And it's still so long before lunch... What can we do in the meantime?"

Yuki paused in thought. What could the two of them do together to pass the time? It didn't take long for him to think of something.

"I've been worried about the secret base lately; it doesn't seem to be doing as well as I'd hoped... Come help me?"

The girl jumped up from her seat in enthusiasm and raced to the door to put her gumboots on. "Can we go now?"

Yuki stood up with a laugh, "Just a minute, I need to get a few things together first."

The violet-haired teen walked through the house; gathering the necessary items with a slight bounce in his step. The usual basket was loaded with gardening gloves, a watering can, his and Tohru's hats and the new tomato seeds that he had purchased the previous week.

Yuki was on his way back to Tohru when he paused outside Shigure's office. Any day, the rat would steer clear of the room entirely, but an earlier thought drove him to slip inside.

Unlike his older cousin, the boy was not a pervert, so it made little sense for him to be in a room that was almost filled to the brim with such novels, some of which were written by the dog, others by his fellow authors. Despite this collection, the author also had a shelf or two of acceptable novels in his office; stories that Yuki would actually allow junior high freshmen to read.

He searched through these titles quickly before pulling out a book to his liking and placing it in the bucket. If Shigure were to come home anytime soon, Yuki doubted he'd notice the book was missing.

He found Tohru half out of the door when he returned. She was swaying from side to side, tapping the frame lightly with her fingertips in impatience. Yuki hadn't seen the girl this enthusiastic in a while, it was refreshing.

He leant against a corner, watching her. The ribbons he had given her that White Day were firmly in place on either side of her head, the tails trailing down and swaying with each movement she made. The zodiac rat had to snap himself out of it or he really would turn into a pervert like his cousin.

"Okay, let's go."

* * *

"Oi, Carrot-top!" Uotani whispered, waving the teen over to her hiding place with Hanajima, "Will this really work? I mean, sure it's a good idea and all, but how do we know they're going to talk about Tohru and all that?"

"Sohma-san and Tohru aren't here today." The dark-haired girl put simply, "If they're both absent on the same day two days running, these girls are bound to talk about it."

"Exactly!" Piped in Kyou, pointing a finger at the girl, "And we'll... I mean you'll catch them in the act!"

"And why can't you do it!?" the Yankee demanded, "Why do _we _have to do your dirty work huh?"

"_Because,_" the boy said through clenched teeth, "if a teacher comes along while I'm filming them, they might get the impression that I'm a... pervert... or something."

Uotani let out a loud, hysterical laugh while Hanajima giggled behind her hand in a more polite manner.

"SHUT UP! ...Anyway, if a teacher sees you two... you'd get away with it."

"You have a point there." The blonde sighed, scratching the back of her head. "Okay we'll do it. Give me the damn camera."

Kyou passed over the expensive camera somewhat reluctantly. "Whatever you do, don't break or damage it in any way! Akito would have my ass if-"

"Akito?" the shorter girl questioned with a raised eyebrow.

"Ah, never mind. Get going."

They all exchanged nods before they split. Uotani and Hanajima walked towards the fan club's meeting room while Kyou wandered lazily back towards the classroom, eager to get some food into him. His stomach growled and he sped up his pace.

* * *

Yuki and Tohru had been working under the sun for a good while; they hadn't achieved much in the way of gardening because the two teens just took their time and chattered non-stop. It was a relaxing atmosphere and the rice ball felt that this was the way things were meant to be.

They had extended a section of the patch to accommodate the tomatoes that were going to be growing there. They had been pulling weeds and turning the soil for most of the time they were there and made a trip or two to the stream to get some water.

The rice ball decided to take a break, feeling tired from the activity. Her body was still recovering and she didn't want to make matters worse for herself, especially when things were starting to improve.

The other teen looked over to find Tohru leaning against a rock, fanning herself gently with one hand. After seeing this, he collected the book from the bucket and passed it over to the girl who took it gratefully.

"Ah, Thank you!" she said with a sweet smile and began using the book as a fan. She stopped suddenly, when she heard Yuki laugh.

"Instead of using it as a fan," he began, scooting over to her, "why don't you read something from it?" He opened the book to the contents page, "See? There's bound to be a story you'd like." He turned back to the garden to continue his work, hearing the girl behind him muttering under her breath, no doubt reading off the possible titles.

"Got it!" she exclaimed, turning to a page in the middle of the book.

Yuki kept his pace, allowing her voice to wash over him as she read aloud. _"She would make a good teacher."_ He mused as he listened. He wasn't lying; Tohru's voice had the right amount of expression with every word she read. She would change her tone and put on voices for each different character.

Within minutes, Yuki found himself lying on the grass, hands behind his head, listening to the angelic voice flowing from the lips of his one desire; Tohru.

He had felt more than friendship for her for awhile and each day that passed that he couldn't call her his own was somewhat torturous. He heard the book close with a snap and a Tohru-shaped figure loomed over him, blocking the sun from his eyes.

"Should we go back now?" she asked, offering her hand to the boy.

He took it and was helped to his feet, nodding in his answer.

Yuki and Tohru strolled back to the house with their vegetables, ready to take a break and make some lunch for their picnic. Yuki had promised to show her a really good spot and she could hardly wait. There was something almost secretive about it, because the boy hadn't described any of it to her since he first mentioned it.

The basket full of vegetables was placed on the countertop by Yuki, who pulled the dirtied vegetables out one by one to pass to Tohru, who would then wash them under the sink. Whenever their hands brushed by accident, it was as if a wave of warmth rushed from the point of contact and sped throughout Yuki's entire being.

They made their lunch in a comfortable silence and packed it into the cleaned out vegetable basket along with a bottle of water and juice from the fridge, a rug for them to sit on and the same book Tohru had read from before.

They set out for their destination just a few minutes before twelve. Yuki had assured Tohru that the place wasn't that far away, just ten minutes walk beyond the stream.

Being the gentlemen that he was, the rat carried the basket; even when Tohru asked to carry it half of the way "to be fair" as she put it, Yuki insisted that it was alright and she gave up with a small pout on her lips. He chuckled inwardly at her expression and bravely grasped her hand in his.

"You wouldn't want to get lost now, would you?"

The smallest blush swept over her features and the pout quickly slipped into a smile. "No!" she answered without hesitation, adjusting her hand to grip his properly.

* * *

"You seem to forget, Saki began, taking a step forward next to her friend, "What you have been doing can be considered illegal."

Every mouth of the fan club girls dropped open in shock.

They had just finished watching the video that the two girls had taken through the window. Hanajima wondered how they could not have noticed them in their obvious position, Uotani suggested that they might just be as thick as they suspected, Hanajima agreed.

"I'm sure you all know the consequences for illegal activity?"

"_That witch Honda Tohru won't be able to go anywhere near Prince Yuki ever again."_

"_Not after we're through with her!"_

"_Who does she think she is!?"_

"_She's taken up two whole days of the Prince's precious time!"_

"_You'd have thought she'd have gotten the message the last time we cornered her!"_

"_And remember she tried to hide that black eye with that lame hairstyle?!"_

"_And her excuse too! Oh, I ah... just walked into an open cupboard door..."_

The conversation was still ringing freshly in their ears for the second time that day.

Mokoto pointed threateningly at the dark-haired girl while her subordinates hurriedly discussed the matter behind her. The club president's arm was shaking and her mouth opened and closed several times before she was able to properly formulate words. "B-blackmail is illegal too!" she shrieked. Her surrounding club members nodded in agreement.

"Oh please."

Their heads all snapped to the Yankee whose lead pole was, thankfully, still concealed somewhere within her school clothes.

"This is hardly what I'd call blackmail... Think of it as..." she smirked, "a warning."

The group of girls exchanged nervous glances, none of them brave enough to say the next word. Motoko, it seemed, was acting as the bravest of them all when she held out her hand, palm up and took a deep breath. "Hand over the tape, Yank."

Arisa laughed mockingly, "Ah and you're asking me _so politely._" She rolled her eyes, "What makes you think we'll and over the tape with you speaking to us like _that_?"

This time, it was Motoko's turn to laugh. And she did so, for a full minute, in the most annoying manner anyone had ever seen. "My daddy," she began, "is in a very _influential position _with the government." She paused for a moment to examine her nails in a snooty manner, "If I ask him, he would be able to get your parents fired from their jobs and prevent them from working anywhere ever again! You'll be poor!" she snickered in triumph along with her followers.

Arisa's smile, however, was not so easily knocked out of place. "Oh, is that so?" she asked before turning her head to the silent girl next to her, "Hana-chan, did you hear that?"

"I did."

The girls stopped their snickering when Motoko's words appeared to have no affect on the two.

Saki looked directly at the club president before she spoke again. "I'd be interested in reading your _daddy_'s waves after this tape gets released to the media."

"Oh! You're right Hana-chan!" Uotani said, clapping the slightly shorter girl on the shoulder, "What a scandal that would be! I can picture it now..." she put on a dreamy expression, tilting her head to one side, "A Government Official was sacked after his daughter and her friends were discovered to be involved in illegal gang activity." She finished with her impersonation of a newsreader.

Their mouth's dropped open once more.

Uotani crossed her arms over her chest in victory, "Looks like I won't be the poor one after all."

"N-no! You can't possibly-"

"We can, actually."

Hanajima decided it was time to officially save their best friend. "You are not to come near Tohru again." She said, seriousness dripping from her words. "You are to disband this fan club of yours and leave Sohma Yuki and his family alone."

"If these instructions are not met," the Yankee added, "well I'm sure you'll all enjoy explaining it to your parents... The police maybe... who knows?"

Kyou, who had been listening to the whole thing from his hiding spot around the corner, pumped his fist into the air. He had done it, albeit it was with the help of Tohru's two friends. Even so, he had initiated the plan and that was enough to make him feel special, it was enough to make him so, damn, happy.

He had finally done something for Tohru and he couldn't have felt better about it. It was the biggest act of selflessness he had ever committed and the cat would never admit it, but it felt good.

Footsteps were headed his way along with high pitched whines and cries. Not wanting to be discovered eavesdropping, Kyou slunk into a nearby stairwell and waited until they passed before making his way to the two girls who had executed his plan, _perfectly_.

"Well... That worked out nicely."

"Nicely?" The blonde put her hands on her hips, glaring at the boy, "_That_, was _bloody brilliant_! Though Hana-chan, I wish you'd have let me hit them with my pipe a couple of times."

"I do admit that jolting them would be fun..." the shorter girl said, tapping a finger to her chin thoughtfully, "Though it would not be proper. Despite what they have done, Tohru would not want us to sink to their level."

"Yeah, I suppose you're right."

* * *

"Ah, we're almost there." Yuki said, stopping so suddenly that Tohru had to stop herself from bumping into him, "Could you close your eyes? And don't peak... I want it to be a surprise..."

The young teen looked at him quizzically, then slid her eyes shut, waiting for him to lead her forward.

The rat gently tugged on her arm and the girl followed right behind him. They walked for almost a minute when Yuki stopped once more and released her hand "Remember, no peaking!"

Tohru tried to restrain herself from turning beat red when Yuki's mouth was inches away from her ear, his warm breath was tickling her slightly but she couldn't bear the thought of moving away. She could feel his hands on her shoulders, _"He must be behind me."_

"Open your eyes." He whispered; his voice sent a tingling sensation down her spine.

She wanted to open her eyes to see where he had taken her, however, at the same time she didn't. She was afraid it was all a dream, that Yuki wasn't this close to her with his hands on her shoulders and his lips, so close. In the end she took a deep breath and opened them.

* * *

AN: There you have it. Chapter Twelve, I hope it was worth the wait. I've been a little unwell lately so it took a little longer than I would have liked...

Next chapter will most likely be the last.

Thank you all for reading,

-X-Nefertiri-X-


	13. Stronger

AN: Sorry it has taken me a little longer to get this chapter out... What am I saying? A little longer? It's been forever!!! FOREVER AND EVER AND EVER!!!!! GOMENASAI!!!!!!!!!!

My laptop had been 'out of order' for a while and I was unable to access the files on it. Then what should happen but a writer's block? Grr. I'm really sorry for making everyone wait like this. I wanted to post this chapter so much earlier and I obviously couldn't. – Gomen if you don't like the ending.

Well here's the last chapter.

* * *

Chapter Thirteen - Stronger

What Tohru saw when she opened her eyes, could only be described as 'beautiful.' Her eyes widened in amazement as she took in her surroundings, matching them up with the tantalizing fragrances in the air and sending her spirits soaring. She left Yuki so investigate.

A small waterfall, only a little taller than she, was flowing peacefully in a glade of willow trees and bushes bursting with colourful flowers. She held her arms out wide and spun around on the spot, a smile naturally easing onto her features. After a few spins, the rice ball turned to the boy behind her with a quizzical look on her face.

"How did you find this place?" she asked, clearly impressed with what she saw.

Yuki smirked at her question, "Luck, actually."

"Really?"

"Hai," he took a few slow steps toward a bush, it was almost like he was circling her, "I was walking this forest not long after moving here and I stumbled upon it by chance. Of course back then it was overgrown with weeds and vines strangling some of the trees, but after a few weeks, I had it all cleared and when spring came around, the whole place really came to life." He picked a yellow flower from a bush and twirled it between his forefinger and thumb. "It's here that I first became interested in gardening."

"It's really beautiful."

"I'm glad you approve. It took a lot of hard work, but it was all worth it to see you smile like that."

Tohru couldn't fight the blush that crept up into her cheeks and when Yuki slipped the flower into her hair, she could have sworn she was the colour of a tomato.

"Do you remember when we first met?"

"Hai, How could I forget the first day of high school?" she chuckled lightly, "everyone was admiring you, you looked so cool."

"But not you."

"Eh?"

"Tohru isn't the type of person to stare at someone."

"You're right, I guess... but I did think you were very beautiful."

They both blushed at her words.

"I don't know if it's a compliment for a guy to be called beautiful..."

"Ah, gomen. I didn't mean to offend-"

"But it's alright, if it's you."

The rice ball tilted her head to the side, making her look even cuter in Yuki's eyes. When he didn't say anything further, Tohru moved to shy away, but Yuki stopped her, holding her in front of him by the shoulders. It was now or never.

"Yuki, I..."

Her voice faded off as the violet-haired teen took a step closer until their chests were inches apart.

The rat reached a slightly shaking hand forward and threaded it through her brown locks. His fingers trailed lightly through her hair as he inhaled her scent. He prayed that no one would come across their position, an intrusion of any form would spoil the atmosphere entirely and Yuki could not have that, not when he was so close.

"If I'd have known back then that I'd feel this way about you, I would have come after you a long time ago."

His heart was racing, his breath a little uneasy, he tried to steady himself; wanting his words to come out correct the first time round. Yuki took a deep breath, relaxed his jaw and said the words he'd been dying to say to the girl he liked. No, to Tohru; the girl he _loved_.

"Tohru..." his voice was a husky whisper that sent pleasurable shivers down her spine, "I-I love you."

The teen didn't want to wait for a reply. His hand found her cheek and guided her head towards his own. He stopped when Tohru's hand fisted his shirt; her lips were mere centimetres from his own.

He felt her whispered, breathy reply, "I l-love you too, Yu-"

In a swift movement he had crushed their lips together, delivering them to the kiss they had waited so long for.

Tohru's eyes widened in shock, her cheeks were flushed as she felt her lips be warmed by Yuki's. Slowly, her lids slid closed as she relished in the sensation. He was gentle but wanting, she could feel all that he felt for her, as if his emotions were being passed to her through their connected lips.

They broke apart, locking eyes with one another and sharing a smile.

Tohru couldn't help herself, she was so overcome with happiness that she forgot all about the curse and threw her arms around the teen in front of her.

"Matte-!"

*POOF*

The moment their chests had touched, Yuki had transformed into his zodiac form. The two now stood; the girl with her feet planted on the ground, the boy-rat standing on her hands.

They looked at each other for a moment before Tohru sank to the ground, clearly upset with her actions.

"Ah! Gomenasai!!!!" she wailed.

Yuki patted her knee reassuringly. "Don't worry about it Tohru, it was bound to happen eventually." The rat said, scratching the back of his head.

Tohru lifted her hands up to bring Yuki closer to her face and before he knew what was happening, she had swooped in and kissed him on the nose.

"Let's eat, okay?" she smiled and settled Yuki down gently on the ground. "I don't know when you'll transform back... so we can just stay back to back until you do."

"Arigatou." He placed his small paw on her hand.

* * *

"Tadaima!" Kyou called as he set foot inside what he had finally come to call his home. "Tohru!? Baka-nezumi!? Shigure!?" he walked up the stairs and dumped his bag in his room without much care for its contents, "Where is everyone?"

The cat marched over to his window and peered out, perhaps Tohru was over by the line hanging out some washing? He felt relieved when he saw her walking towards the house; book in hand, a smile covering her features. Kyou was annoyed that connected to her other hand was Yuki, smiling along with her.

"_Is it okay?"_ he asked himself in his head. He knew what their joined hands and careless expressions meant; that Yuki had confessed and Tohru had accepted him.

His chest hurt as he looked down on the newly formed couple. It wasn't fair, not to him. Yuki always won, it seemed. He'd won all the fights and won the girl and it tore him up inside. He'd denied it far too long that he loved her. He told himself not to, told himself that she was just a friend and what he felt for her was 'brotherly-love.' He felt like such a fool to have denied it for so long.

The cat placed both hands behind his head and took a deep breath, desperate to calm himself down. He knew that Tohru had been through a lot, so he wasn't going to let his feelings for her be shown or told, not ever- _"Unless that damn Yuki ever does anything to hurt her..."_ because she deserved this happiness.

If he was honest with himself, Kyou would rather Tohru not choose either of them, that way, they would both be equally as special in her eyes like they were before and Kyou would be able to spend time with her just like he used to.

He wished that the four of them could continue on living in that house forever, a childish notion he knew, but it would mean that Tohru would be with him forever. She'd always be there in the morning making breakfast, always be there to visit him up on the roof in the middle of the night, there to talk to, there to laugh with. It was because Tohru was living with him that he hadn't left to train with Kazuma in the mountains again.

As of this moment, everything was going to change.

He heard the two enter the house and shot downstairs. They'd been alone for long enough, Kyou decided, so it wouldn't matter if he stole Tohru away for a little while, right?

He walked down the stairs, trying to act as casual as possible.

"Yo," he kept is greeting short.

Tohru looked up to meet his gaze and quickly detached her hand from Yuki's. Kyou couldn't help but notice.

"Ah, Kyou! Welcome home! Have you been here long? Gomenasai! I should have been here to greet you!" she closed her eyes and bowed with her apology, hoping her housemate would forgive her.

When she felt a hand on the top of her head, the rice ball's eyes shot open again.

"Honestly Tohru, it's fine." The cat said, ruffling her hair up into a bit of a mess.

She stood up and gave him one of her goofy smiles. In Kyou's opinion she looked more goofy than usual with her hair sticking up in a fuzz ball. It was enough to make him return a smile of his own.

The cat cleared his throat, not wanting to prolong the silence and grasped Tohru's hand in an instant. "Come talk with me." He said, fighting a blush at how un-Kyou-like his words sounded, dragging her back through the door.

"Oi, baka-neko. Just where-"

"You've been with her all day, rat." Kyou spat, pausing in his tracks. "She's my friend too you know! You don't have the right to stop me from spending time with her!"

He redirected his attention back to the girl whose hand he still held firmly in his own. Giving her a light tug, the teen pulled her outside and over to the ladder that lead up to the roof.

Tohru looked at him questioningly, tilting her head the one side.

"We haven't caught up in a while..." the boy said, scratching the back of his head, trying his best to act normal. "And, well... we always seem to talk best when we're up there..." He placed his hand on his chest and gave her a slight bow while gesturing to the ladder, "After you, miss."

The rice ball chuckled and ascended the ladder rung by rung.

They sat side by side on the peak of the roof, looking out over the scenery, listening to the birds sing to each other. They'd been in this position countless times before, but the two housemates never got tired of the view.

"So..." Kyou began a little awkwardly, feeling weird to break the peaceful silence, "You and Yuki are an item now-"

"EH!?" Tohru jumped at his words, having to clutch at the roof tiles to make sure she didn't fall off.

Her companion looked at her surprised expression with one of his own. Confusion evident on both their faces for a whole minute before Tohru could finally speak.

"Y-Yuki and I aren't a couple, no..."

"You're not?" This sounded all too weird to the cat _'I could have sworn...'_

"We may lo-love each other..." A blush crept its way through her cheeks and settled comfortably, "but we don't want things to change just yet."

Kyou was feeling beyond relief. His heart felt lighter, his aura was glowing and he believed he was the epitome of happiness... for the moment. While he still had a chance to fight for Tohru's love, there was very little that could bring him down. The fact that he knew that rat was listening made it even better.

"You... you won't leave again, will you?" Tohru asked in a barely audible voice.

She felt Kyou slide closer to her until their shoulders were just touching.

"As long as you need me around, I'll stay."

And so, for the second time that day, the rice ball completely forgot all about the Sohma's curse and threw her arms around the boy beside her, promptly turning him into a cat in a cloud of smoke.

She held the newly transformed Kyou at arm's length and let out a loud laugh.

The orange cat stared at her with unblinking eyes before a vein started to pulse on his forehead, turning him from loving friend into pissed off cat in less than a second.

"Baka! What are you doing?"

Tohru continued to laugh "Gomen!"

"Put me down!"

"But you're so soft!!"

"SOFT!? Why you..."

Not too far below them Yuki was rolling his eyes. Honestly, when would the cat ever learn? He made his way into the kitchen to fetch himself a glass of water. The teen stood there, sipping for a moment before dumping the rest of the glass' contents in the sink.

Later he'd ask Tohru to throw out her medication. She didn't need it, she had them.

Momiji, who would willingly let himself be turned into a rabbit so Tohru had something soft to hug.

His stupid brother Ayame, who would whisk her away to some soothing location whenever she felt stressed.

Hatori, to offer guidance and assistance whenever she would need it.

Shigure, to make her laugh and keep her mind off any thoughts that would lead her in the wrong direction.

Uotani and Hanajima to scare off his stalker fan club and protect her where he and Kyou couldn't. To provide her with the comfort that only girls can provide.

Kyou, to fight with, to let her anger and frustration out in small bursts. To have a friend to talk to at any time of the day or night. He would be someone could protect her from the outside and from herself.

'_And me...?'_ Yuki wondered, leaning his back against the sink.

Yuki would provide that extra bit of comfort and friendship that she needed and only he could provide. Holding her hand, picking her up from work, helping her with homework, getting her to help with the vegetable patch and taking her to _their_ spot.

It didn't seem like much, but as Yuki heard her ringing laugh echo through his ears once more, he found that he didn't care, as long as he could hear that sound forever.

* * *

Back up on the roof Kyou was still growling at her while she cracked her famous goofy smile.

'_Oka-san, I want to keep living here with the Sohma's. Day after day, learning more about them. Learning more about myself. With them, I know I will become stronger."_

* * *

AN: SO there you go. That's the ending of the story.

I'd like to thank everyone who read and commented this story. It means a great deal to me to know that there are actually people who are reading what my imagination throws out of my head and into a typed format.

Eventually I'll get around to creating a new story, but I think I'll finish it first before I post it. That way I won't leave anyone waiting so long for chapters like I did here (GOMEN AGAIN!).

-X-Nefertiri-X-


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